As energy dependency increases in Europe, Turkey and Italy found it necessary to cooperate on pipeline projects to secure Europe’s energy supply and to increase their role as transit countries in the Mediterranean and southeast Europe. At the end of the 1990s Italian and Turkish energy companies started to collaborate on such projects as Blue Stream, Samsun- Ceyhan, and Interconnector Turkey-Greece- Italy (ITGI). In these pipeline projects- both crude oil and natural gas- Russia has been a major player since it is one of the main energy- producing countries in the region and has a significant role in the energy policies of other energy-producing countries in the Caspian and the Caucasus. However, the competition among the regional countries in the Black Sea and the Mediterranean has decreased the effectiveness of the collaborative projects of Italy and Turkey. Thus it is argued that there is an urgent need for cooperation at the regional level- especially between Bulgaria, Turkey, Greece, Ukraine and Moldova- in order to secure the energy supply, and to diversify the routes and resources.
EU, energy dependency, regional cooperation, energy production, consuming and transit countries.
Italian and Turkish energy needs and policies are somewhat similar as both countries are import dependent and situated at important junction points in the Mediterranean and southeast Europe. The energy-producing countries in the region, namely in the Caspian and Middle East, are separated from energy-consuming countries by natural boundaries, such as the Black Sea, the Mediterranean Sea and the Aegean Sea. Therefore, Turkey and Italy are essential to link these energy-rich regions with energy-poor ones, and cooperation with each other and the other countries surrounding them is increasingly important since industry is becoming more and more dependent on natural gas, not only in Italy and Turkey, but everywhere in the European Union (EU). The EU attaches importance to regular dialogue and security of supplies in relations with energy-producing countries and regions. Thus, transit countries are increasingly important in maintaining and sustaining security of energy supply, which increases the importance of countries in the Mediterranean and Southeast Europe, and the importance of such projects as the Interconnector Turkey-Greece-Italy (ITGI) and Nabucco at the EU level. Also the EU’s financial and political support is needed for the construction of these pipeline projects, maintaining their security and sustaining the secure flow of energy.
Natural gas is an important fuel for electricity generation in European countries since it is less expensive than nuclear or renewable energy sources.1 Also natural gas is preferred by developing countries as it is an efficient source of energy and natural gas pipelines are quicker to construct than other forms of energy infrastructure,2 although they need long-term cooperation agreements with the states where the pipelines pass. The largest natural gas resources are located in the Caspian, the Caucasus, and Middle East and Mediterranean countries such as Russia, Iran, Qatar,
Turkmenistan, Saudi Arabia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Algeria, Azerbaijan and Iraq.3 The transport of natural gas from these countries to energy-consuming countries requires close cooperation, stable and sustainable agreements among these energy-producing and the energy-consuming countries, as well as with transit countries such as Ukraine, Bulgaria, Romania, Turkey, Greece and Italy.
In the light of these issues, this paper aims to explain the needs and policies of Italy and Turkey regarding energy transport and natural gas and oil demand while focusing on the Italian and Turkish collaborative projects such as the Blue Stream pipeline, the Samsun- Ceyhan pipeline, and the ITGI project. In analyzing the energy needs of the two countries, the focus is on natural gas since there is a constant increase in demand for natural gas in industry and the daily lives of people in Italy and Turkey.