Georgian president arrives in Turkey; gas talks high on agenda

Negotiators from Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan have been wrangling over how to divide quotas for gas from the Shah Deniz field in the Caspian, which is expected eventually to have a peak capacity of 8.4 billion cubic meters (300 billion cubic feet) of gas and 2 million tons of gas condensate per year.

Turkey has agreed to give up some of its share of gas to the two countries, former Soviet republics, which are eager to avoid importing expensive Russian gas. but the terms of a deal have yet to be hammered out.

Energy supplies from Azerbaijan's Caspian fields are playing an increasingly important role in the region, as Russia has dramatically raised prices for its natural gas.

Workers began extracting gas from Shah Deniz on Saturday.

Saakashvili arrived in Turkey as the guest of Turkish President Ahmet Necdet Sezer. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was on a visit to the United States.

The Georgian delegation included the energy minister, and was expected to move on to Istanbul, Turkey's commercial capital, later on Tuesday. The Associated Press

/The International Herald Tribune/