Blast In Turkey Halts Azerbaijani Gas Flow Again

The BP-Azerbaijan energy company says the flow of Azerbaijani natural gas to Turkey via the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum pipeline has been halted.

Turkish media reports say the gas supplies were suspended after an explosion hit the line near the Turkish village of Kars late on October 3.

No cause for the blast has been given.

Operations to repair the line are under way.

The explosion was the second to hit the Turkish section of the pipeline this year.

The first one, in May, also halted the Azerbaijani gas supply to Turkey.

Last month, Azerbaijani, Georgian, and Turkish troops conducted military exercise aimed at improving security for energy pipelines.

In June, Turkey and Azerbaijan signed a deal to build a new a $7 billion pipeline -- the Trans-Anatolian Natural-Gas Pipeline (TANAP).

Based on reporting by "Hurriyet," Interfax, and ITAR-TASS