The Shah Deniz II consortium's selection on June 26 of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline as its natural gas western export gateway moved the project farther along. Much more will need to be done before it becomes reality.
Still, the consortium's decision was a milestone. "This is the first and an important step in opening up the Southern Gas Corridor," said TAP Managing Director Kjetil Tungland. "As we look ahead, the Southern Gas Corridor will have a major role to play in Europe's energy security and ensuring the diversification of gas supplies to western and southeastern European markets."
He said the project's selection confirmed that it is the most technically and economically advanced route for transporting Shah Deniz gas to European markets. The 870-km TAP system will connect with the Trans Anatolian Pipeline near the Turkish-Greek border at Kipoi, and cross Greece, Albania, and the Adriatic Sea before coming ashore in southern Italy.
The project's route can facilitate deliveries to Bulgaria, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia, and other southeastern European countries, other TAP officials said. Its landfall in Italy—Europe's third-largest gas market—provides further opportunities to transport Caspian gas to France, Germany, the UK, Switzerland, Austria and other western European nations, they indicated.
"Choosing Italian and southeast European markets for delivery of gas from Shah Deniz Stage II is a major step forward for the development of our project," said Gordon Birrell, BP's regional president for Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey.
"We are very pleased that the comprehensive and very competitive pipeline selection process has concluded, so that we can move forward with the Southern Gas Corridor," he continued. "This will bring gas from the Caspian Sea directly to Europe for the first time."
Ends first phase
TAP's selection concluded the first phase of the corridor's development as experts from the consortium evaluated proposals from TAP and the competing Nabucco West project. The consortium has sales agreements in Italy and Greece and is negotiating in Bulgaria.
Rovnag Abdullayev, president of State Oil Co. of the Azerbaijan Republic, said the next step will be when the Shah Deniz partners make a final investment decision later this year on the full Shah Deniz Stage II development.
"Beyond Shah Deniz, we are confident that Azerbaijan's gas exports will increase dramatically as fields like ACG Deep, Absheron, Umid, and Shafag-Asiman are developed, and we see the pipeline route toward Austria as a natural market for this gas," he said. "The development planning of both pipeline routes lays the foundation for future growth, and we appreciate the support of the European Commission throughout this process."