World Bank OKs Caspian pipeline financing

[Robb]

WASHINGTON -- The World Bank agreed Tuesday to provide $250 million in financing for a $3.6 billion pipeline that would bring oil from the Caspian Sea region through Turkey to Western markets.

While the loan is only a small fraction of the cost of the planned Baku-Ceyhan pipeline, the financing has been viewed as crucial for the project to attract private financial support.

The executive board of the International Finance Corp., the World Bank's private investment arm, approved the financing despite requests by some environmentalists and human rights groups that a decision be postponed until some issues, including the pipeline route, can be further examined.

The pipeline and a separate deep-water oil field project off Azerbaijan in the Caspian Sea, which also was approved, "are sound projects" that have extensive environmental and social safeguards and community involvement, said Rashad Kaldany, director of the World Bank's oil, gas, mining and chemical department.

The 1,095-mile oil pipeline will carry up to 1 million barrels a day from Azerbaijan through Georgia and Turkey to the Turkish port of Ceyhan on the Mediterranean Sea.

(more)

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Related story: Caspian Sea States finalized environmental accords today.

[Zhade]

1. Kick

Kick

[TrogL]

2. Billions spent on the war in Afghanistan

and the pipeline ends up going through Turkey.

Go figure.

[Robb]

3. This is just oil

I stand behind my early predictions about natural gas (reprinted letter to the editor from way back).

[Stephanie]

4. The gas pipeline would have saved Enron, right?

By making the energy plant at Dabhol viable. I think that was part of Ken Lay's plan to extricate the company from disaster - cheap natural gas for the Dabhol plant.


*edit - hence, the "carpet of gold or carpet of bombs" threat from the Bushies. Was this pipeline discussed in the secret Cheney energy meetings?

[DUreader]

5. Enron is still around

[Zan_of_Texas]

8. Enron

has been in bankruptcy since December 2001. It is expected that when the many lawsuits wind their way into some sort of settlement, the debt will be settled at roughly 16 cents on the dollar, and those who owned stock will get nothing. Lawyers involved are raking in millions per month, however. Enron still owns the Portland utility, but has gotten rid of most meaningful portions of its business.

Stephanie, I do not think the pipeline would have saved Enron. Enron was a swindler's game of being in debt but doubling the debt as they went further down, and not for just months but several years. Dabhol was just one thing of many that was not working, not really bringing in money, rather bleeding money.

The Dabhol plant was a bold idea, biggest foreign investment ever in India, IIRC. And had to have natural gas to fuel it to be even somewhat economically viable (not to mention loan or loan guarantees from the US gov't agencies like the Import-Export Bank). No natural gas was available without the pipeline that has not been built, and the plant is rusting, last I checked.

[sistersofmercy]

7. Yoy get my vote!

[sistersofmercy]

6. Yep can't keep those pesky Taliban under control. But wait there will

be one through the northern tip of Iran running through Iraq to the Persian Gulf. I betcha! Wanna bet?