Baku, Azerbaijan, June 1
By Maksim Tsurkov – Trend:
If the "Contract of the Century" is one of the greatest contracts of the 20th century, then the Southern Gas Corridor project is one of the most important agreements of the 21st century, Azerbaijani MP Rauf Aliyev told Trend on June 1.
He said the main achievement of the policy pursued by President Ilham Aliyev is formation of the energy security of Europe, which also includes Azerbaijan.
"Azerbaijan's growing role in the energy security of Europe has further strengthened the economic and political interest in our country. This is a project through which extensive international cooperation is carried out. Azerbaijan, implementing a project requiring such large-scale economic and political cooperation, will further strengthen its influence on international arena," Rauf Aliyev said.
He stressed that the opening of the Southern Gas Corridor proved that Azerbaijan has reached all the goals set before the country, and the project's realization showed that the country has entered a new stage in the development of the oil and gas industry.
The ceremony of launch of the first stage of the Southern Gas Corridor project was held in Baku May 29.
Thus, the gas from the Azerbaijani Shah Deniz field has already gone through the first segment of the Southern Gas Corridor - from the Sangachal terminal expanded for Shah Deniz 2 to the expanded South Caucasus Pipeline.
The next stage will be the commissioning of the TANAP gas pipeline, through which the gas will enter the territory of Turkey and will go further to Europe. The ceremony of launch of TANAP will take place on June 12 in Turkish Eskisehir city.
The Southern Gas Corridor is one of the priority projects for the EU and provides for the transportation of 10 billion cubic meters of Azerbaijani gas from the Caspian region through Georgia and Turkey to Europe.
At the initial stage, the gas produced within the second phase of development of the Azerbaijani field Shah Deniz is considered as the main source for the Southern Gas Corridor projects. At a later stage, other sources may be connected to the project.