La strategia russa di egemonia energetica arriva in Uzbekistan
17/2/2007Se fra il 2001 e il 2004 l’Uzbekistan sembrava avviato a stringere maggiori legami con gli USA, dopo i fatti di Andijan del maggio 2005 i rapporti fra Tashkent e l’Occidente si sono raffreddati.
La Russia segue con attenzione l’evolvere della situazione nel paese centrasiatico. Nuovi programmi in materia di politica energetica, voluti dal presidente uzbeko Islam Karimov, sono in gestazione con il forte interessamento — e coinvolgimento — di Mosca. Analisi di Sergei Blagov per Eurasianet:
Russia is moving aggressively to help Uzbekistan fulfill ambitious energy development plans. Since the start of 2007, one Russian state-run energy entity has signed a new production sharing agreement with an Uzbek concern, and other Kremlin-controlled firms have moved forward on an array of separate deals.
On February 5, The Uzbek state-owned oil and gas monopoly Uzbekneftegaz announced the signing of a new production sharing agreement (PSA) with Soyuzneftegaz Vostok Ltd, a fully owned subsidiary of Russia’s Soyuzneftegaz. The agreement involves a 5-year joint exploration period and a 36-year joint development program concerning the Central Ustyurt and South-Western Guissar hydrocarbon deposits. Uzbek President Islam Karimov issued a special decree to validate the deal, under which Soyuzneftegaz Vostok is committed to investing $466 million, including $370 million over the first three years of the contract. The agreement replaces a 2001 PSA between Uzbekneftegaz and British-registered UzPEC. In 2004, Soyuzneftegaz, headed by Russia’s former energy minister Yuri Shafranik, took over UzPEC.
