Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 19
Trend:
The Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) will play an important role in addressing the issue of Europe's energy dependence, a member of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament Katarina Nevedalova said, responding to a question from the European Azerbaijan Society about cooperation between the EU and Azerbaijan in the field of energy security.
Along with developing trade relations between the EU and Azerbaijan, TAP will play an important role in resolving issues such as energy security and energy dependence, Nevedalova said.
"As a member of the European Parliament from Slovakia, it is not difficult to recall the problems that have occurred earlier with Russia in the field of gas supply. Today, most Eastern European countries that are members of the EU, depend on Russian oil and gas. Therefore forecasting diversification of energy sources is an extremely important issue in a difficult global market," the member of parliament said.
The consortium of Azerbaijani Shah Deniz gas and condensate field development announced its choice of the TAP project in late June, as a route for transportation of gas to the European markets.
The initial capacity of the TAP pipeline will stand at 10 billion cubic meters per year, with a chance of increasing these figures to 20 billion cubic meters per year.
Trans-Anatolian gas pipeline (TANAP) will be built to transport gas through Turkey; this pipeline will ensure gas deliveries to the European border.
Shah Deniz reserves are estimated at 1.2 trillion cubic meters of gas.
Within the second phase of development it is planned to produce some 16 billion cubic meters of gas (within the first phase - 9 billion), six billion of which will be transported to Turkey and ten billion to Europe.
Translated by M.L.
Edited by C.N.