BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 14
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
The commissioning of the Italian section of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) is scheduled for the third quarter of 2020, in line with the project schedule, Vugar Veysalov, TAP Head of External Affairs, told Trend.
The project schedule remains unchanged and TAP continues to work towards being ready to deliver first gas from Shah Deniz by the end of 2020, he added.
Earlier, TAP Director of Corporate Services Jonathan Collingwood said that the start of gas deliveries to Europe from Azerbaijan’s Shah Deniz gas and condensate field through the Trans Adriatic Pipeline is planned in October 2020.
“We will dedicate the upcoming months to the successful commissioning of the pipeline along its various sections, with progressive testing, in order to be prepared for operations and the start of commercial gas deliveries to Europe. In parallel, we are preparing for commercial operations as an independent transmission operator (ITO),” he said.
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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