Violence clouds launch of major US-backed Caspian oil pipeline

The planned launch this Wednesday of the 4 bln usd Baku-Tbilisi-
Ceyhan pipeline, a major US-backed global energy initiative, has been clouded by
a recent violent crackdown on the opposition in Azerbaijan.

British oil giant BP holds a 30 pct stake in the consortium running the
pipeline. Other consortium members include Azerbaijan’s state oil company SOCAR,
Amerada Hess, ConocoPhillips, Eni, Inpex, Itochu, Statoil, TPAO and Unocal.