Government Aims at Attracting Billions of Petro-dollars

Financial experts claim that, since September 11, the amount of petro-dollars in the world has climbed to 800 billion dollars. The Privatization Administration formed a project group consisting of various ministers as well as highway and dam construction experts. Administration deputy president Metin Kilici stated that the organization had initiated activities to determine the most appropriate privatization methods for Turkey, pointing out that some of the methods on the agenda were the issuance of revenue-sharing bonds and the transference of managing rights and the enactment of leasing procedures. Noting the results of careful study of the world’s most successful examples, Kilici said, "European countries appreciate the petrol capital in Middle East and Arab countries. We witnessed that fact first hand during our meetings in London last week with the British finance minister. Why shouldn’t we also profit from these sources?"

What is the petro-dollar?

At the end of 1973 and at the beginning of 1974, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) applied a surcharge to the cost of petrol in an effort to leverage the financial power of petroleum, thereby threatening western countries. In 1979, the second largest surcharge was enacted, shifting massive dollar reserves from western economies into the coffers of OPEC countries. In world economics, the large income generated from the export of petrol has been defined as ‘petro-dollars’.

Aydin Haskebabci / Ankara / TURKEY