Azerbaijan, Baku, Oct.11 / Trend E. Ismailov /
The first gas supplies from the second phase of the development of the Shah Deniz gas in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian will start in 2017, Michael Rosen, Head of External Communications RWE Supply & Trading said today.
According to him, the Shah Deniz project partners recently announced a tender for gas sale in the second phase of the project. They focus on delivery of the first gas supplies already in 2017.
"RWE has also been invited to participate in this process," Rosen said.
According to him, the company within implementation of the Nabucco gas pipeline project holds talks on gas supplies from Iraq and Turkmenistan.
"Schedule of investment decisions and construction of the Nabucco gas pipeline will be synchronized with the terms of the sale of available gas reserves," he said.
Peak production is forecast at over 8.6-9 billion cubic meters. Gas production may be brought up to 25 billion cubic meters per year under the second stage of development.
Gas is transported to Georgia and Turkey via the South Caucasus Pipeline.
The contract to develop Shah Deniz was signed June 4, 1996. Participants are BP (operator) - 25.5 percent, Statoil - 25.5 percent, NICO - 10 percent, Total - 10 percent, LukAgip - 10 percent, TPAO - 9 percent, and SOCAR - 10 percent.
Nabucco gas pipeline project is worth €7.9 billion. Construction of gas pipeline is planned to be launched in 2011, the first supplies - in 2015. Maximal capacity of the pipeline will hit 31 billion cubic meters per year.
Construction of the Nabucco pipeline will be implemented in two main phases. The first phase of construction (2011) includes laying a new pipeline length of 2,000 kilometers, starting at the Turkish border and ending in Austria's Baumgarten. The second phase (2014-2015 year) includes the construction of the remainder of the pipeline on the border between Turkey and Georgia, as well as Turkey and Iraq.
Construction of the first section of Nabucco length of 2.730 kilometers will begin in the southern part of Ankara (Turkey) and will continue in the western direction to the Bulgarian border through Central Anatolia and the Marmara Sea. 75 percent of the route will pass through existing pipelines.
Nabucco participants are the Austrian OMV, Hungarian MOL, Bulgarian Bulgargaz, Romanian Transgaz, Turkish Botas and German RWE. Each has an equal 16.67-percent share.