Eurasian energy union to form as region becomes energy hub

The Chairman of the International Association for Energy Economics Union (IAEE), Gürkan Kumbaroğlu, announced that the Turkey- and Azerbaijan-led energy projects are turning the region into an energy hub.

The heads of the IAEE and Azerbaijan's state-owned oil and natural gas company SOCAR held a meeting in Istanbul and announced that they have agreed in principle about regional energy structuring.

Kumbaroğlu said now that the Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Project (TANAP), which aims to meet the natural gas demand of Europe and Turkey, has strengthened ties between the related countries, a permanent organization called the IAEE Eurasia Union will be established. The center of the union in Turkey along with other parties have agreed in principle that this new structure will first be initiated in Azerbaijan. "Under this union, we hope to unite Russia, Ukraine, Kosovo and Serbia, which had clashed about energy in the past," Kumbaroğlu said.

Accordingly, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Kosovo, Macedonia, Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Russia, Ukraine, Romania, Kazakhstan, Greece, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria and Slovenia will gather under this union. "As the IAEE, we hope to invest in these countries, establish workshops and form business opportunities. I personally believe that since the pipelines in the Balkans cross Macedonia and Kosovo, it is crucial to support these countries in order for our cognates to benefit from these resources," Kumbaroğlu said, adding that the IAEE Eurasia Union will be of great importance in this respect.