Baku, Azerbaijan, May 21
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
A Trans-Caspian Pipeline has the potential to change the energy landscape of Europe, Trend reports with reference to the article of Luke Coffey, Director, Douglas & Sarah Allison Center for Foreign Policy at the Heritage Foundation.
Coffey believes that there are three reasons to push for a Trans-Caspian Pipeline now.
“First, there is the progress being made with new pipeline projects in the region. Azerbaijan started delivering gas to Turkey in mid-2018 via the Trans Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) and is poised to send gas to Italy via the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) by next year. Also next year, the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) is expected to start delivering gas from Azerbaijan all the way to Europe. With an expandable capacity of thirty-one billioncubic metres, TANAP and the SGC will be able to deliver gas from any future Trans-Caspian Pipeline,” he writes.
Second, according to the expert, Europe, Azerbaijan, and Turkmenistan all need a Trans-Caspian Pipeline, albeit for different reasons.
“Europe is actively seeking alternatives to Russian energy resources. Azerbaijan is trying to cement its position as the region’s most important energy player. Turkmenistan needs to find new markets for its natural gas,” the article reads.
Finally, Coffey points out that the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea, signed by all five Caspian littoral countries last year, allows pipelines to be established with only the consent of the countries involved in the project. This is a major change for the better, according to the expert.
The author believes that instead of constructing a pipeline first, Baku and Ashgabat should instead focus on constructing an interconnector between offshore fields of Azerbaijan in Caspian and offshore fields in Turkmenistan .
“Over time, options should be explored to include Kazakh gas fields using interconnectors, since some Kazakh fields are in close enough proximity to be commercially viable,” the article reads.
Trans-Caspian Pipeline envisages transportation of Turkmen gas to Europe through Azerbaijan.
Turkmenistan is studying the possibility of bringing its energy products to the European market. To this end, a 300-kilometer gas pipeline will have to be laid along the Caspian seabed to the shores of Azerbaijan.
Turkmenistan has declared its readiness to supply Europe with an annual volume of up to 40 billion cubic meters of gas.
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