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Trans Adriatic Pipeline reconfirms Shah Deniz II as initial gas source for the pipeline

15 September 2010 11:24 (UTC +04:00)

Baku. Nijat Mustafayev â€“ APA-Economics. The Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) highlighted today that the Shah Deniz II natural gas field in Azerbaijan is the initial target of gas intended for the project.

In a joint statement, shareholders EGL, Statoil and E.ON Ruhrgas said: "The TAP pipeline is designed to cater for the volumes of gas from Shah Deniz phase two that will be exported beyond Turkey into Europe. TAP shareholders consider Caspian gas to be the initial source of supply to fill TAPâ€™s initial capacity of 10 bcm per year. The pipeline will not transport any Iranian gas under the current political circumstances."

"The TAP pipeline will be ready when Shah Deniz phase two starts production." Kjetil Tungland, Managing Director of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline project said.

The 520km long pipeline will transport gas via Greece and Albania and across the Adriatic Sea to Italyâ€™s southern Puglia region and further to western Europe. The project is aimed at enhancing security of supply as well as diversification of gas supplies for the European markets. TAP will open a new so-called Southern Gas Corridor to Europe and market outlet for natural gas from the Caspian Sea. The project is designed to expand transportation capacity from 10 to 20 bcm per year depending on throughput. The TAP project also envisages the development of natural gas storage facilities in Albania to further ensure security of supply during operational interruptions of gas deliveries.