Baku, Azerbaijan, Aug. 24
By Maksim Tsurkov - Trend:
The issue of Montenegro's joining the TAP project will be discussed late August at a meeting of representatives of the Balkan countries in Vienna, Montenegrin newspaper Dnevne Novine said August 24.
TAP is of great importance for Montenegro, according to the article.
"TAP is a cheap source of energy," the article said. "This project can become a stimulus for the development of industry and households of Montenegro. Montenegro and other Balkan countries are interested in the construction of the pipeline."
TAP will transport natural gas from the giant 'Shah Deniz 2' field in Azerbaijan to Europe. The approximately 870 km long pipeline will connect with the Trans Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) at the Turkish-Greek border at Kipoi, cross Greece and Albania and the Adriatic Sea, before coming ashore in Southern Italy.
The pipeline's construction is expected to start in 2016.
TAP's initial capacity will be 10 billion cubic meters per year, expandable to 20 billion cubic meters per year.
TAP's shareholding is comprised of BP (20 percent), SOCAR (20 percent), Statoil (20 percent), Fluxys (19 percent), Enagás (16 percent) and Axpo (5 percent).
Edited by CN
---
Follow the author on Twitter: @MaksimTsurkov