Nabucco West, the OMV-backed plan to pipe Azeri gas to western Europe, has been rejected, ending one of the most drawn-out contests in the hydrocarbons world.
A BP-led consortium developing the Shah Deniz gasfield in Azerbaijan, told Nabucco shareholders the 3,900-kilometre pipeline route had been rejected, OMV said yesterday. The competing Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (Tap) that crosses Albania and Greece to Italy has reportedly been chosen.
"The decision does not influence OMV's strategy of growing upstream and integrated gas," said OMV, which is a quarter owned by Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Company. "OMV intends to play a role in further securing and diversifying the gas supply to Europe and will assess alternatives to complement the existing supply routes."
Shares of OMV and Hungary's MOL, another Nabucco investor, rose after the announcement.
"This was quite a capital-intensive project but in politically unstable regions," said Daniel Damaska, a senior analyst at Raiffeisenbank in Vienna.
The decision put an end to a decade-long contest. Driven by a desire to diversify gas supply away from Russia, European investors homed in on Azerbaijan, where officials hoped that the Shah Deniz gasfield, under development by BP, Statoil, Total and its own State Oil Company, could help ramp up the nation's annual gas production to 50 billion cubic metres.
Of all the plans to transport that gas to Europe, Nabucco was the most ambitious or most impractical, depending on who you asked. Deemed "inevitable" in 2009 by José Manuel Barroso, the European Commission president, Nabucco was to have a capacity of 31 billion cubic metres and a budget of €7.9 billion (Dh37.78bn).
"Nabucco was always somehow a little bit doubtful," said Mr. Damaska. "It's a huge distance, and from the beginning Turkey was somehow always blocking the negotiations and [given] the route with all these countries, you cannot rely on what happens next."
As the competition grew tighter, Nabucco shareholders shrank the pipeline to a third of its original span, eliminating the Turkish section, and rebranded it Nabucco West. OMV and MOL also bought a 20 per cent stake in Pearl Petroleum, the Crescent Petroleum and Dana Gas joint venture operating in the Kurdish region of Iraq.
But last year MOL stopped approving its budget for Nabucco. Germany's RWE, a Nabucco investor, dropped its stake this year; OMV sold it last month to GDF Suez.
Nabucco owes its name to the 1841 Giuseppe Verdi opera, which executives attended 11 years ago as they mapped the pipeline in Vienna. Said the composer of the work: "Though I had many difficulties to fight against, it is certain that 'Nabucco' was born under a lucky star."
ayee@thenational.ae
Sreesanth's India bowling career
Tests 27, Wickets 87, Average 37.59, Best 5-40
ODIs 53, Wickets 75, Average 33.44, Best 6-55
T20Is 10, Wickets 7, Average 41.14, Best 2-12
School counsellors on mental well-being
Schools counsellors in Abu Dhabi have put a number of provisions in place to help support pupils returning to the classroom next week.
Many children will resume in-person lessons for the first time in 10 months and parents previously raised concerns about the long-term effects of distance learning.
Schools leaders and counsellors said extra support will be offered to anyone that needs it. Additionally, heads of years will be on hand to offer advice or coping mechanisms to ease any concerns.
“Anxiety this time round has really spiralled, more so than from the first lockdown at the beginning of the pandemic,” said Priya Mitchell, counsellor at The British School Al Khubairat in Abu Dhabi.
“Some have got used to being at home don’t want to go back, while others are desperate to get back.
“We have seen an increase in depressive symptoms, especially with older pupils, and self-harm is starting younger.
“It is worrying and has taught us how important it is that we prioritise mental well-being.”
Ms Mitchell said she was liaising more with heads of year so they can support and offer advice to pupils if the demand is there.
The school will also carry out mental well-being checks so they can pick up on any behavioural patterns and put interventions in place to help pupils.
At Raha International School, the well-being team has provided parents with assessment surveys to see how they can support students at home to transition back to school.
“They have created a Well-being Resource Bank that parents have access to on information on various domains of mental health for students and families,” a team member said.
“Our pastoral team have been working with students to help ease the transition and reduce anxiety that [pupils] may experience after some have been nearly a year off campus.
"Special secondary tutorial classes have also focused on preparing students for their return; going over new guidelines, expectations and daily schedules.”
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Infiniti QX80 specs
Engine: twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6
Power: 450hp
Torque: 700Nm
Price: From Dh450,000, Autograph model from Dh510,000
Available: Now
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
BULKWHIZ PROFILE
Date started: February 2017
Founders: Amira Rashad (CEO), Yusuf Saber (CTO), Mahmoud Sayedahmed (adviser), Reda Bouraoui (adviser)
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: E-commerce
Size: 50 employees
Funding: approximately $6m
Investors: Beco Capital, Enabling Future and Wain in the UAE; China's MSA Capital; 500 Startups; Faith Capital and Savour Ventures in Kuwait
Rooney's club record
At Everton Appearances: 77; Goals: 17
At Manchester United Appearances: 559; Goals: 253
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
