BAKU, Azerbaijan, Oct.30
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
The state-owned oil company of Azerbaijan SOCAR is considering investing in Albania, said Azerbaijan’s Ambassador to Tirana Anar Huseynov, Trend reports.
Ambassador Huseynov said that Azerbaijan is interested on investing in Albania in several sectors, not only in energy, Euronews Albania reports.
Asked specifically about SOCAR, he said that the company has expressed its interest in coming to Albania.
“There are other investment opportunities, apart from TAP. And this is currently under consideration. From what I know, there’s been a delay due to the pandemic, but SOCAR is still seeing the new possibilities to invest in your country. And they hope that in the upcoming years, they will be well-represented in the country”, said the ambassador.
Albania is one of the host countries of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline.
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.
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).
---
Follow the author on Twitter: @Lyaman_Zeyn