Azerbaijan, Baku, July 15 / Trend A. Badalova /
Azerbaijan can play a key strategic role in ensuring the security of energy supplies to Europe and diversifying the sources, the Head of DEPA (Greek gas company) Gary Sachinis said at the conference "Caspian Gas: Current Trends, Future Scenarios", in Baku.
The conference is organized by SOCAR and the Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy.
Sachinis said that the ITGI gas pipeline, designed to transport Caspian gas to Europe, may become the first project to open the "Southern Gas Corridor".
A pipeline from Turkey to Greece already exists within this project.
"We are actively working with our partners in Bulgaria now to develop a branch from Greece to Bulgaria," Sachinis said. We will be able to complete the construction of an interconnector from Greece to Italy by 2017."
Sachinis said that the implementation of the ITGI project will be coordinated during the second stage of development of the Azerbaijani "Shah-Deniz" gas condensate field.
Azerbaijan can deliver 10 billion cubic meters of gas to Europe, he said. About 1 billion of this will be supplied for consumption in Greece - the rest will be delivered to Bulgaria, Romania, and other neighboring countries.
At present, Azerbaijani gas is in negotiations, Sachinis said. Gas, in the future, is expected to arrive from Turkmenistan, Iraq, and other Azerbaijani fields.
"If there is an additional amount of gas and necessary contracts available in the future, the Nabucco gas pipeline and other gas pipelines may be built during the second phase of implementing the Southern Corridor", Sachinis said.
The Southern Corridor is a priority EU energy project which will diversify energy supply routes and sources, and increase EU energy security. The Southern Corridor includes the Nabucco gas pipeline, the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), White Stream, and the Turkey-Greece-Italy pipeline (ITGI).