Baku, Azerbaijan, Apr. 13
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
Georgia is ready for discussions and cooperation with Azerbaijan’s SOCAR within the Underground Gas Storage (UGS) project, Georgia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Energy Minister Kakha Kaladze said in an interview with Trend.
“The planned UGS project is first of all considered a strategic infrastructure, supporting improvement of energy security of Georgia and providing guaranteed supply of consumers with natural gas in any possible critical situation,” said the minister.
He noted that the UGS capacity shall also be allocated to commercial purposes if considered that withdrawal patterns respect strategic storage needs.
Kaladze recalled that France’s Geostock performed in 2015-2016 a detailed feasibility study for establishment of the UGS at Samgori South Dome depleted field.
The feasibility study confirms technical possibility of constructing underground gas storage to meet requirements of reliability and commercial operability of the facility, he said.
“With the current approved schedule and strategy, in order to achieve an operational injection start-up of the underground storage in 2021, the construction tender procedures are planned to be launched in the following few months,” said Kaladze.
Earlier, head of SOCAR Energy Georgia, Mahir Mammadov said Azerbaijan’s SOCAR will participate in the construction of the underground gas storage in Georgia.
SOCAR delivers its gas to Georgia via a pipeline that runs through Azerbaijan’s Gazakh District. The capacity of the pipeline nears 3 billion cubic meters per year. Azerbaijan is the main gas supplier to Georgia with a share of 77.9 percent of the country’s total gas imports.
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