Azerbaijan, Baku, 24 April / corr Trend A.Badalova / The signing of a protocol agreement between Italy and Azerbaijan on the delivery of gas is an important step in the establishment of an institutional basis for the Turkey-Greece-Italy gas pipeline (ITGI), Elio Ruggeri, ITGI Project Manager, said to the second Caspian Oil and Gas trade and Transport Conference in Baku on 23 April.
According to Ruggeri, the construction of the gas pipeline is scheduled for 2012. The analysis of expediency has been held.
In 2005 Italy and Greece signed an intergovernmental agreement, in 2007 Italy, Greece and Turkey inked trilateral agreement and in December 2007 Azerbaijan and Italy signed a protocol on mutual understanding. In accordance with the protocol, the sides agreed to establish a coordinating committee which will provide necessary support in talks between the Italian company Edison and State Oil Company of Azerbaijan, the delivery of gas, the quantity and duration of deliveries in line with the discharge capacity of ITGI transport corridor and gas production projects in Azerbaijan.
Ruggeri said that the next phase will be to implement the contracts. There are plans to realize the intergovernmental agreements and concrete agreements in 2008 and 2009. The ITGI transport corridor includes the renewed Turkish pipeline infrastructure, as well as ITG (connecting pipeline Turkey - Greece) and IGI.
The Greece-Italy pipeline will ensure the Turkey-Greece-Italy link to enable the transport of gas from the Caspian region and Near East to Italy and West Europe via Turkey and Greece.
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