Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan.9
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
The European Commission will disburse over 14 million euros worth funds for the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) in line with the progress of the action, Trend learned from the European Commission.
“TAP was granted 14 million euros in 2017 following the 2016 Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) call. All grant agreements have been signed by the Innovation and Networks Executive Agency (INEA) and the beneficiary. The funds will be disbursed in line with the progress of the action,” said a source in the European Commission.
The beneficiary of the funds is the TAP AG consortium. These funds will be used for archeological trial trench investigations and rescue excavations to be carried out as part of the project.
EU member states agreed in February 2017 on the European Commission's proposal to invest 444 million euros in priority European energy infrastructure projects. A total of 18 projects were selected for funding and TAP project was among them.
The source further said that the adaptation of the third Projects of Common Interest (PCI) list is still ongoing.
“The European parliament has asked for an additional two months, so the list is expected to become enforceable in the end of March 2018,” added the source.
TAP worth 4.5 billion euros is a part of the Southern Gas Corridor, which is one of the priority energy projects for the European Union. The project envisages transportation of gas from Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz Stage 2 to the EU countries.
The pipeline will connect to the Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) on the Turkish-Greek border, run through Greece, Albania and the Adriatic Sea, before coming ashore in Italy’s south.
TAP will be 878 kilometers in length (Greece 550 kilometers, Albania 215 kilometers, Adriatic Sea 105 kilometers, and Italy 8 kilometers).
TAP’s shareholding is comprised of BP (20 percent), SOCAR (20 percent), Snam S.p.A. (20 percent), Fluxys (19 percent), Enagás (16 percent) and Axpo (5 percent).
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is considering allocation of 500 million euros loan for TAP project. Aside from EBRD, the European Investment Bank (EIB) will also discuss the allocation of 1.5 billion euros loan for TAP in February.
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