Press Release
For immediate release – 16 December 2002
Friends of the Earth, Kurdish Human Rights Project, The Corner
House, PLATFORM and Ilisu Dam Campaign
Controversial BP pipeline Delayed—Campaigners insist human rights and
environment must be considered first
Campaigners welcomed press reports issued on 13 December
[1] that a decision on funding BP’s
controversial Baku-Ceyhan pipeline is to be delayed for at least six months,
until late next year. According to BP, the delays stem from difficulties in
satisfying the requirements of financial institutions. The Baku-Ceyhan Campaign
[2] has been calling on the British government not to put
any public money into the project until major outstanding human rights, environmental
and social issues are resolved.
The planned Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline would run over 1,000 miles from BP’s
Caspian oilfields, through Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey, to the Mediterranean.
BP’s Chief Executive John Browne has said that BP would only build the
pipeline if “free money” were offered by governments. Only 30%
of the US$3.3 billion cost of the pipeline will come from the oil companies
involved, much of the remainder coming from taxpayers’ money through
institutions such as the International Finance Corporation, part of the World
Bank. [3]
Last month, the campaigners wrote to Clare Short, the UK government minister
responsible for Britain’s contributions to the World Bank, urging her
to delay any decision on funding for the project. The campaigners argued that
the project had not been designed for public benefit, and therefore should
not currently be eligible for public money.
In particular, the project would exacerbate poverty in the region, and add
to the countries’ debts; it would undermine the transition to democracy;
it would inflame conflict, and lead to human rights abuses; and it would add
to greater climate change.
A letter was also written to Baroness Symons, minister in charge of the Export
Credits Guarantee Department, which is discussing funding the project.
Kerim Yildiz, director of the Kurdish Human Rights Project, commented that,
“Perhaps this delay indicates that the financial institutions and potential
funders of the pipeline are seeking answers to the deeply disturbing questions
that BP has been reluctant to address. In particular, BP has failed to allay
our concerns about human rights abuses, security, environmental damage, and
possible breaches of Turkeys legal obligations”.
Kate Hampton, international climate change co-ordinator of Friends of the
Earth, said “This delay will give public financial institutions and
the UK government an opportunity to think seriously about their lending policies.
They must act to prevent dangerous climate change, rather than simply supporting
business as usual”.
Nicholas Hildyard, of The Corner House, added, “BP has been trying to
push this project through regardless. It bullied the Georgian government into
approving a flawed environmental impact assessment, in order to satisfy its
commercial deadlines. We are delighted that the World Bank and other financial
institutions are not prepared to be steamrollered in this way.”
In late November, BP heavily lobbied the Georgian government, warning that
if the government did not approve its section of the pipeline by the end of
the month, then the project would be suspended. [4]
The Georgian environment minister only signed the approval after the personal
intervention of President Shevardnadze, following a visit by the US envoy
to the region. [5]
With BP’s funders delaying their support of the pipeline project, is indicative of the fact that BP is both fallible and answerable to an entity beyond their Board. For the past six months, the NGO coalition has worked consistently to highlight the project and its detrimental human rights and environmental consequences and has now broken significant ground.
[1]: AFX (Baku), ‘BP sees BTC pipeline finance delayed until Q3’,
14:50 GMT, 13 December 2002
[2]: The Baku-Ceyhan Campaign, is a project of the
successful Ilisu Dam Campaign. It is working to raise public awareness of
the social problems, human rights abuses and environmental damage that may
be caused by the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline. In particular, the campaign
argues that public money should not be used to subsidise social and environmental
problems, purely in the interests of the private sector, but must be conditional
on a positive contribution to the economic and social development of people
in the region. Partners of the Campaign include Friends of the Earth, the
Kurdish Human Rights Project, the Corner House and PLATFORM.
[3]: The lead funders being approached for the project are the International
Finance Corporation and the European Bank of Reconstruction & Development,
supported by a number of export credit agencies, including the UK’s
Export Credit Guarantee Department.
[4]: See eg BBC Monitoring, Rustavi-2 TV, Tbilisi, ‘Georgian environment
minister under pressure to back pipeline impact report’, 1700 gmt, 25
November 2002
[5]: AFX (Tbilisi), ‘Georgia approves BP-led Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil
pipeline's construction’, 2 December 2002
For further information please contact: Kerim Yildiz, Executive Director / Anders Lustgarten, Environmental Officer / Angela Debnath, Public Relations Officer Kurdish Human Rights Project on the address below.
Please e-mail KHRP at khrp@khrp.org,
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