Turkey Backs Azerbaijani Gas Pipeline Proposal

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources Europe (Galway, Ireland)--The Turkish Energy Ministry has announced its intention to support a proposal by Azerbaijani state oil and gas company Socar for a pipeline to carry gas from the BP Lead Azerbaijani Shah Deniz II gas field to Europe. The proposed pipeline is in direct competition with the EU-backed Nabucco pipeline project.

The pipeline is of strategic importance to Turkey, where a new generation of natural gas-fired power plants are under development. These include Osmaniye, Eurostar, Anadolu, Erzin and Dervish, all of which will benefit from the new pipeline.

The proposal was announced in Istanbul by Rovnag Abdullyev, the president of Socar, as the Anatolian Transit Gas Pipeline Project. Turkey and Azerbaijan are working together to develop the proposed pipeline; however, no definite decisions have been made on where the line will begin and end, or what the capacity will be.

"We have an agreement in principle, but no details have been finalized," Abdullyev said. No decision had been taken as to whether Azeri gas would go to Europe via Bulgaria or via Greece and Italy, he added.

It is anticipated that the pipeline will have a capacity of no less than 16 billion cubic meters a year, with 10 billion cubic meters destined for Europe and 6 billion cubic meters for Turkey's western regions.

A consortium will be created to build the new pipeline that will carry natural gas from Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz II project through Turkey. The consortium members will be picked by Azerbaijan's government, as well as the companies participating in the development of the Shah Deniz field. The Turkish government also will nominate one participant.

The Socar proposal is one of four that are competing to carry the gas from the Shah Deniz Field to Europe. The other projects--Nabucco, Interconnector Turkey-Greece-Italy (ITGI) and Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP)--were invited to submit their final proposals to the BP lead consortium by October 1.

The Shah Deniz II project is expected to begin supplying gas to Europe by 2017.

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