In 2001, Turkey passed a Natural Gas Market Law which will significantly reform the countrys gas sector. Among other things, the Law will abolish the Botas monopoly, separating the company into units for natural gas import, transport, storage, and distribution by 2009. At that point, the various components (except for transport) are to be privatized. In the meantime, Botas is supposed to sell off at least 10 percent of its market share every year, eventually getting it down from 100 percent to 20 percent by 2009. To date, however, progress in these areas has lagged, with -- among other things -- parliamentary delays in approving an amendment easing restrictions on foreign players in Turkeys gas sector. In March 2004, Turkeys energy market regulatory agency threatened Botas with fines over the companys failure to meet the target of reducing its market share by 10 percent per year. As of June 2005, the so-called gas release program still had not gotten underway. One obstacle is opposition by Russian and Iran to changing the terms of their gas export contracts with Botas. In June 2004, the Turkish Energy Ministry proposed reducing the share of gas contracts that Botas would have to transfer to the private sector; 25 percent by 2009 instead of 80 percent. The bill was withdrawn a few weeks later in response to both domestic and foreign opposition. In July 2002, TPAO said that it would begin negotiations with Germanys Lurgi Oel Gas Chemie on building Turkeys first natural gas storage unit. The facility would be located 50 miles west of Istanbul on the Marmara Sea coast, and will include equipment to for gas purification. Meanwhile, Botas reportedly plans to build another gas storage plant at Salt Lake (Tuz Golu) in central Anatolia.In December 2004, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Turkey, during which the two countries signed a memorandum of cooperation on natural gas development. This includes the volume and pricing of Russian gas sold to Turkey via the Blue Stream Pipeline.