SOVIETS SAID TO DASH WEST`S HOPE FOR MASSIVE DEAL

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP83M00914R001200100003-9
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 20, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 13, 2007
• Sequence Number: 3
• Publication Date: June 30, 1982
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

ishington Post
30 June 82
-R '
Approved For Release 2007/11/13: CIA-RDP83M00914R001200100003-9
f
Massive ,_ - ea .
By Dusko Doder : J rope will have anmpact well beyond .
WaahingtonPost ForelgnSerAce : ,?:~ = the controversial ..pipeline. being
MOSCOW, June` 29=The Soviet pl9ned to carry natural gas to -the';.
pion has decided 'to. produce its West. But it was unclea here wheth-
in barge, compressor stations lot der the. Soviets were developing their
-e domestic gas pipelines scheduled : ownYurbine:in an=effort'to pressure
be built this decade; thus ending; WestEuropean;governments"to seek-;
e expectations of -Western Euro=_ a.reversalof.Reagan's-embargo_'
an companies for -mole -than $1,0.; ,--, The Siberia-Western Europe pipe,
lion in -contracts, according to line -an d the Ave companion pipe-
'estern businessmen her e.:;-'- : { ''ines serving West resections of Eu- N
The disclosure suggested-that the --ropeariRussia and Eastern ; Europe.
eagan.administration's decision to- - are;.Moscow's key. energy project of in Moscow's purchase of -US. :oil the; :decade... Apart;. from'-:securing {
id gas' equipment ' and similar ma-,';,steady: sources of. hard currency;-the
iinery made , under license: in:Eu= :? :.-:stated objective-:of the export p peg,
-ice rY_ ?- Sa
=the five' other. trunk lines are tracted to build 42 compressor sta
'fined to increase the use of pleas-. = tions':on the export. pipeline -and
1 natural gas in the Soviet Union were expecting: to supply equipment
offset rising oil consumption: - -' for 130 compressor stations on the
'he reported Soviet decision to -five domestic pipelines.
Juce new large turbines does not But a Western European - busi- -i
ct the contracts signed by Euro- nessman with - long -experience in
firms participating in the con- pipeline equipment exports to Mos
ction of the 3,500-mile pipeline : cow said he was advised that the So-
-ie West: The Soviets, who expect - viet government would build - the
lake roughly., $8 billion annually '.large 25-megawatt turbines for pipe-
t these sales to Western Europe, -;line stations such as the: LMZ plant
insisting that the ? Europeans,*
uropeans 's - `.'in Leningrad.:
t their obligation. =_ 'This nieant,`he'said, that the ex-
ccording to Western :business: pected'Soviet contracts for the conk
here, their. firms have. con; ;_ - ":See COMPRESSORS; A12, Col_:1=
st
ruction ,DM-G compressor stations for the five
trunk pipelines would not materialize: =
The Reagan administration's sanctions primar
,ily..affect'European:companies manufacturing gas .
`turbine-blade~ .under-license to General Electric.:-:
The blades: are seen as. essential: for compressing
~rgas at stations along the pipeline The largest So
viet turbines currently -operating are.-atyhalf- the
11 capacity of the GE 25-megawatt model.'"'' Y ~}`
'The firms affected are AEG of West Gerinany,
the Italian state-owned Nuovo Pignone, Alsthom
Atlantique of France and John Brown and Co., a
British engineering firm. - - -
Business'sources here said that the Soviets' de-
cision to produce a. new genjration of turbines waj,
taken-recently': Two and possibly- fpur protype
models are already being tested in Ceningi?ad:- '--
The government-news agency Tass said recent -
ly that the Soviet 25-megawatt turbines developed''
by academician Igor Glebov are 1:5 times more
efficient than the GE turbine.
Western businessmen ucic,
identified for fear of harming their companies'
+- r..: ' interests in the United States, have been angry tI
-
Reagan's decision to force sanctions retroac -.71
Some have called Reagan's.?move "downright un- :
ti :..
? ethical" and have voiced fears that the Americans
-; :would "ruin our chances"Vin 'the Soviet m`arket'for
en
d
f ? `: ? The Soviets-.are reported to littve. m
anies that if they fail to meet their -
n
`
e
comp
ster
W
contractual obligations on the export pipeline,
- :they would have to pay enormous penalties. -- -
' A senior Soviet. official told Western reporters.
TIsi; week that the export pipeline would be tom-
t' th American action.
e
t
e
~`.p`leted on schedule despi
viets would
S
h
o
e
.( Observers here: believed that ,t
to then word because this has. become a
u
live
.
p
restige as-well as-:of hard currency. To
-
f
att
p
tn
ero
m
do': so,. however, .the - Soviets may have to delay
_pragram? _
ruPt their energy
struction of. the domestic pipelines, and may dis-:
17`-While other firm s'supplying-U.S.-designed tur-
bi'es rely on American. -delivery of, rotors, the ..
r:-French firm. of Aisthom Atlantique can make it
itself under license. The company could theoret=
ically supply.Soviet needs, but it would have to
build a new plant.
Business - sources ' here said -the Soviets and'.
West Europeans could possibly jointly produce :
the turbines. Such a move would depend on po` ,
'litical'decisions here and in Western Europe- '.
But as one businessman put it, at the moment :
"we are being-told -clearly to forget it." The Soviets
i appear intent to cut Western firms out of energy'
In a perhaps related move, Western diplomatic -
sources reported tonight- that Moscow has'-told.'
!?. - several Western European governments., that it**,
{ - .. plans to reduce telephone links with Western Eu
rope beginning Thursday. _
The move -could affect business connections .
between -.the:-Soviet- Union and the West. There.
was also speculation here that-it would reduce the
ability: of Soviet emigres in the West 16- contact
their relatives and friends here as well as the abil-
' ity of Soviet citizens to?,make?overseas calls. : ' -
-According to diplomats, lines'with West Ger=
ed
d
b
uce
e r
many would
with Britain from 46 to 14. Also to be cut are lines
. to - Austria, Italy, - France, Belgium, the Nether-
cleai whether lines to the United States are going
I to* be affected by cuts. - - ' t-
Approved For Release 2007/11/13: CIA-RDP83M00914R001200100003-9