Turkmenistan president to discuss energy coop`n in Italy.

ASHGABAT, November 24 (Itar-Tass) - Turkmenistan's President
Gurbanguly Berdymukhamedov heads to Italy on Tuesday for the first-ever
official visit. Cooperation in the energy sector will be one of the main
subjects of discussion during his talks in Rome.
The press service of the Turkmen government has pointed out that this
"is called forth by both Turkmenistan's great hydrocarbon fuel potential
and the European community's mounting interest in the supply of gas from
the republic". Ashgabat more and more actively helps forward the idea of
diversifying the supply of its energy resources to external markets.
The programme for Berdymukhamedov's two-day stay in Rome is a
hard-driving one and includes a series of important talks, including those
with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.
The sides are planning to sign a package of documents on partnership
priorities. A Turkmen-Italian business forum is to be held within the
scope of the visit. The forum is called upon to give greater scope to
bilateral cooperation.
In 2008, bilateral foreign-trade turnover ran at $1,500 million and
over $385 million over the first ten months of 2009.
Italian companies implement 12 investment projects in Turkmenistan,
mainly those in the sphere of trade and construction.
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