BAKU, Azerbaijan, Oct.22
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
Gas commissioning activities as part of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) project are expected to begin in Greece and Albania during the fourth quarter of 2019, Trend reports citing Spanish Enagas, which is one of the shareholders of TAP.
As for the recent developments, Enagas said that the positive result of the non-binding phase of the “market test” launched by TAP on 1 July, shows the market interest in this infrastructure in view of an eventual expansion of its capacity up to 20 billion cubic meters (bcm), from the current capacity of 10 bcm.
On 6 September, the approval to the extension of the Environmental Impact Statement of the Project was obtained by the new Italian government, pending the permits associated with the laying of the offshore pipeline, said the company.
TAP project, worth 4.5 billion euros, is one of the priority energy projects for the European Union (EU). The project envisages transportation of gas from Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz Stage 2 to the EU countries.
Connecting with the Trans Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) at the Greek-Turkish border, TAP will cross Northern Greece, Albania and the Adriatic Sea before coming ashore in Southern Italy to connect to the Italian natural gas network.
The project is currently in its construction phase, which started in 2016.
Once built, TAP will offer a direct and cost-effective transportation route opening up the vital Southern Gas Corridor, a 3,500-kilometer long gas value chain stretching from the Caspian Sea to Europe.
TAP shareholders include BP (20 percent), SOCAR (20 percent), Snam S.p.A. (20 percent), Fluxys (19 percent), Enagás (16 percent) and Axpo (5 percent).
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