TAP may get another source of funding
The Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB) may be involved in financing the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), the bank told Trend March 22.
"Currently, we are negotiating with the Southern Gas Corridor CJSC and TAP AG Consortium to find out how we can help implement this project," the bank said. "The Southern Gas Corridor project itself is very significant for us as it directly affects five of 11 BSTDB member-states, while the rest - indirectly. So, we hope to give big funds for TAP."
BSTDB has been already involved in financing various stages of the Southern Gas Corridor project. Thus, the bank provided Lukoil with a loan worth $60 million within the Stage 2 of the Shah Deniz gas condensate field development project. Today, Shah Deniz Stage 2 is the main source of gas, which will be supplied to Turkey and further to Europe via the Southern Gas Corridor.
Moreover, in 2016 the bank additionally allocated $30 million for SOCAR Turkey Energy, which is involved in the construction of the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP).
The Southern Gas Corridor, worth over $40 billion, is considered as one of the priority energy projects for the EU, which strives for diversification of gas sources. The project envisages the transportation of gas from the Caspian region to the European countries through Georgia and Turkey.
At an initial stage, the gas to be produced in the Stage 2 of development of Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz field is considered as the main source for the Southern Gas Corridor projects. Other sources can also connect to this project at a later stage.
As part of the Shah Deniz Stage 2, the gas will be exported to Turkey and European markets by expanding the South Caucasus Pipeline and the construction of Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) and Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP).
Azerbaijan ups gas transportation from Shah Deniz field
More than 1.33 billion cubic meters of gas was transported via the South Caucasus (Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum) pipeline in January-February 2018 as compared to 1,295 billion cubic meters of gas in the same period of 2017, says a report of Azerbaijan's State Statistics Committee.
"About 29.6 percent of gas transported via the country's main pipelines accounted for the South Caucasus pipeline in January-February 2018," says the report.
In total, about 4.51 billion cubic meters of gas was transported via the country's main pipelines in the period as compared to 4.33 billion cubic meters in the same period of 2017.
The length of the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum pipeline is more than 700 kilometers. The pipeline transports gas produced at the Shah Deniz gas and condensate field in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea. The gas is supplied to Georgia and Turkey.
Oil transportation via BTC increases
Around 5.46 million tons of oil were transported via the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline in January-February 2018, as compared to 5.42 million tons in January-February 2017, the Azerbaijani State Statistics Committee said in a report.
"In January 2018, 81.7 percent of oil transported via the country's main pipelines accounted for the BTC pipeline," says the report.
A total of 6.68 million tons of oil were transported via the country's main pipelines in January-February 2018 as compared to 6.88 million tons in January-February 2017, the committee said.
In January-February 2018, 1010,800 tons of transit oil were pumped through the BTC, which is almost 1.2 percent more than in January-February 2017.
Total length of the BТС is 1,768 kilometers, including a 443-kilometer section running through Azerbaijan, a 249-kilometer section in Georgia and a 1,076-kilometer section in Turkey. The construction of the pipeline started in April 2003. It was filled with oil May 18, 2005.