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Iran may negotiate with Statoil regarding share in TAP

Oil&Gas Materials 24 July 2015 16:24 (UTC +04:00)
Iran may negotiate with Norway’s Statoil regarding the share in the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), which envisages the transportation of the Caspian gas to the European markets.
Iran may negotiate with Statoil regarding share in TAP

Baku, Azerbaijan, July 24

By Aygun Badalova - Trend:

Iran may negotiate with Norway's Statoil regarding the share in the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), which envisages the transportation of the Caspian gas to the European markets, James Dorsey, senior fellow at Nanyang Technological University's S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies believes.

"An Iranian acquisition would make sense from Iran's perspective and it will want to prepare in every way it can for the day that there is a return to business as usual," Dorsey told Trend on July 24.

Earlier it was reported that Statoil intends to sell its 20-percent share in the TAP.
Iran, which has recently reached a nuclear agreement with the P5+1, granting Tehran sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program, has repeatedly express the willingness to export its gas to Europe. Earlier Iran's ambassador to Azerbaijan Mohsen Pak Ayeen said that the Islamic Republic may join TANAP, which being a part of the Southern Gas Corridor will connect to TAP at the Turkish-Greek border.

"We are looking into the possibility of buying equity in TANAP", Pak Ayeen said, adding Iran may buy equity in the pipeline, if reaches its production targets by 2018.

At the same time, James Dorsey believes that it is too early to predict what Iran's moves will be on the current stage.

"The sanctions have not been lifted and it will be months before that happens. The Security Council has authorized lifting of sanctions provided the agreement is implemented without hitches. For starters we have 2.5 months of deliberations in the US Congress and the Iranian parliament before the agreement is ratified and only then does implementation and the phased lifting of sanctions begin," Dorsey said.

Yet, Dorsey believes that Iran still could negotiate with Statoil in any case, given good opportunities and conditions.

TAP will transport natural gas from the giant Shah Deniz II 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.

TAP's initial capacity will be 10 billion cubic meters per year, expandable to 20 billion cubic meters per year. The pipeline's construction is scheduled to start on May 16, 2016.
TAP's shareholding is comprised of BP (20 percent), SOCAR (20 percent), Statoil (20 percent), Fluxys (19 percent), Enagás (16 percent) and Axpo (five percent).

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Aygun Badalova is Trend Agency's staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @AygunBadalova

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