The Trans-Adriatic pipeline (TAP) has transported the first 10 billion cubic meters (bcm) of Azerbaijan’s natural gas to Europe in the 14 months since its commissioning, the company operating the pipeline Trans-Adriatic Pipeline AG announced on Thursday.
The company stated out of these 10 bcm, approximately 8.5 bcm have been delivered to Italy.
Trans-Adriatic Pipeline AG added that the pipeline can double its capacity and expand in stages to up to 20 bcm per year within 45-65 months.
TAP is part of the Southern Gas Corridor, the initiative of the European Commission for a natural gas supply route from Caspian and Middle Eastern regions to Europe. The goal of the SGC is to diversify Europe's sources of energy supply.
The SGC, with an estimated investment cost of approximately $40 billion, includes development of the Shah Deniz gas field in the Caspian Sea and 3,500-km chain of pipelines consisting of three projects – the South Caucasus Pipeline via Azerbaijan and Georgia, the Trans Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) across the Turkish territory and the TAP crossing Greece and Albania to reach Italy.
