Georgia already has a small pipeline running part of the route that is appropriate for the early oil. Baku is considering the Turkish-backed project and a rival plan to transport the oil by pipeline through Russia to the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk. Both plans initially envisage pipelines leading to Black Sea ports, but Turkey ultimately hopes to transport the oil overland to the Turkish Mediterranean port of Yumurtalik. Moscow is applying strong political pressure in favour of the pipeline through Russia. The final decision on the export route for the early oil, representing the first 4 to 7 million metric tons of annual production from the Azerbaijani oilfields in the landlocked Caspian Sea, is expected in the coming weeks.
Analysts say more than one route is likely to be opened in the long-term.
But the early oil decision could affect the size of each country's share of future output. Georgia desperately needs the income that would come from transit fees and investment if it won the short-term project. The transit route for the Azerbaijani oil has become the focal point of a struggle for influence in the region between Turkey, Russia and Iran. Ciller said Turkish businessmen saw plenty of opportunities in rebuilding Georgia's devastated infrastructure. She praised the recent opening of a new border crossing between the two neighbors, and spoke of the great potential for boosting Turkish trade with Georgia and other former Soviet republics.