Construction of the Trans-Adriatic pipeline begins in Greece

The TAP (Tranasadriatic) gas pipeline laying ceremony was held in Thessaloniki with the participation of high-ranking officials from Greece, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Bulgaria.

The TAP project is part of the Southern Gas Corridor, designed to deliver Azerbaijani gas to Europe, along with such gas pipelines as the Trans-Anatolian (TANAP) and the South Caucasus.

The construction of the TAP is carried out with the aim of transporting gas from the second stage of the Shah Deniz gas condensate field in Azerbaijan to the EU countries. The pipeline will have a length of about 870 km and is connected to the TANAP gas pipeline on the Turkish-Greek border, then it will pass through Greece, Albania, the Adriatic Sea, and then to the south of Italy.

It is planned that the first gas from the Azerbaijani Shah Deniz gas field will reach Europe by TAP in 2020. The initial capacity of TAP will reach 10 billion cubic meters per year, with the possibility of further expansion to 20 billion cubic meters.

TAP shareholders: BP - 20 percent, SOCAR (State Oil Company of Azerbaijan) - 20 percent, Snam - 20 percent, Fluxys - 19 percent, Enagás - 16 percent, Axpo - five percent.