WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Secretary of Energy Samuel W. Bodman will lead a Presidential Delegation to Azerbaijan this week to participate in the 2008 Energy Summit hosted by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev on November 14.  During the trip, Secretary Bodman and the U.S. delegation — including U.S. Special Envoy for Eurasian Energy C. Boyden Gray and U.S. Ambassador to Baku Anne Derse — will take part in a number of bilateral meetings with foreign heads of state and government ministers to discuss the U.S. commitment to the development of the Southern Pipeline Corridor and to bringing Central Asian and Caspian oil and gas to global markets. The mission builds upon President Bush’s strong support for the Southern Corridor supply route — a key initiative to enhancing global energy security. 

“The United States remains firmly committed to the development of independent, commercially viable energy supply routes enabling the transport of competitive energy resources from the Caspian region to meet the needs of markets east, west, north and south,” Secretary Bodman said.  “There is no doubt that this region’s energy potential, if properly managed, will promote significant economic growth for its people and its investors.  If we continue to promote a strong investment climate, we can look forward to additional energy projects and a reliable network of pipelines for transporting oil and gas resources to Western markets, bringing great benefits to the citizens and economies of this region and, as a result, the entire world.”

The Energy Summit is built around the core nations of Georgia, Ukraine, Poland, Lithuania and Azerbaijan and is focused on promoting a collective energy transit space — a critical component of a common European energy policy.  At the summit, Secretary Bodman and the U.S. delegation will encourage countries to increase cooperation regionally and to engage with Europe to help connect viable suppliers in the Caspian region with global markets.

The Baku summit is the fourth in a series that began in Krakow, Poland (May 2007), followed by Vilnius, Lithuania (October 2007) and most recently Kiev, Ukraine (May 2008). Secretary Bodman is the first U.S. cabinet-level official to participate in the series.

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Healy Baumgardner (202) 586-4940