In a 2007 speech, the Israeli ambassador to Azerbaijan, Arthur Lenk, spoke of a continuous trade between Azerbaijan and Israel in the energy sector. He noted that until the inauguration of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline in 2006, Israel was a key consumer of Azerbaijani oil exports, and that the proximity of Ceyhan to Israel offers excellent new opportunities for greater Israeli participation in this sector of the economy, thus creating additional areas for collaboration and mutual benefit. He underlined that through the Trans-Israel pipeline between Ashkelon and Eilat, Israel could be a strategic partner for marketing Caspian oil to Asia. Israeli efforts in developing alternative energy resources, especially solar energy, were also mentioned. Israel additionally seeks possibilities of importing gas from the Caspian Sea region.