Baku, Azerbaijan, May 17
By Maksim Tsurkov - Trend:
The Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) will support the efforts of countries in Southeastern Europe to achieve energy security, said First Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan Yagub Eyyubov.
He made the remarks during the groundbreaking ceremony for TAP in Thessaloniki, Greece, on May 17.
Eyyubov said the TAP enables European countries to diversify not only the sources but also the routes of gas supplies.
"TAP will provide strong support for Europe's efforts to achieve energy security," he added.
He also expressed confidence that through joint efforts the project will be completed in time and the Azerbaijani gas will reach Europe in 2020.
Eyyubov added that Azerbaijan possesses large reserves of gas, which in the future can be used to fill the IGB (Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria) and the IAP (Ionian-Adriatic Pipeline), and praised the political support to these projects by the Balkan countries.
A groundbreaking ceremony for the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) took place in Thessaloniki, Greece, May 17.
Attending the ceremony were such high-ranking officials as First Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan Yaqub Eyyubov, Azerbaijan's Minister of Energy Natig Aliyev, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, Vice-President of the European Commission for Energy Union Maros Sefcovic, Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili, Greek Energy and Environment Minister Panos Skourletis, Bulgarian Energy Minister Temenuzhka Petkova, as well as the representatives of the project shareholder companies, including Rovnag Abdullayev, head of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR).
TAP is the third part of the Southern Gas Corridor, envisaging Azerbaijani gas supplies to Europe, along with the South Caucasus Pipeline (SCP) and Trans-Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP).
TAP project envisages transportation of gas from the Stage 2 of development of Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz gas and condensate field to the EU countries.
The 870-kilometer pipeline will be connected to the Trans Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) on the Turkish-Greek border, run through Greece, Albania and the Adriatic Sea, before coming ashore in Italy's south.
It is expected that the first gas from Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz gas field will reach Europe via TAP in 2020.
TAP's initial capacity will be 10 billion cubic meters of gas a year, expandable to 20 billion cubic meters.
TAP shareholders are: BP (20 percent), SOCAR (20 percent), Snam S.p.A (20 percent), Fluxys (19 percent), Enagas (16 percent) and Axpo (5 percent).
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