Azernews.Az

By Trend

The US commends the historic progress being made on the Southern Gas Corridor project, which envisages transportation of Azerbaijani gas to Europe, the US State Department said in a statement.

“The United States commends the historic progress being made on the Southern Gas Corridor in Azerbaijan and Turkey, which could bring Caspian gas from Azerbaijan to countries across Europe by 2020,” said the statement.

"The United States reaffirms its support for energy projects that enhance energy diversification and energy security for our allies and partners worldwide," according to the State Department.

“Diverse sources and delivery routes ensure that energy is available at the best price to all and that no supplier can use energy to economically or politically coerce consumers,” the statement reads.

A ceremony to launch TANAP, which is a part of the Southern Gas Corridor, took place June 12 in the Turkish city of Eskisehir.

TANAP, together with Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), is a part of the Southern Gas Corridor, which provides for the transportation of gas from the Azerbaijani field Shah Deniz to Europe.

The initial capacity of TANAP is expected to be 16 billion cubic meters of gas per year. About six billion cubic meters will be supplied to Turkey, and the rest to Europe. After completion of the TAP, the gas will reach Europe in early 2020.

The share distribution in TANAP is as follows: Southern Gas Corridor CJSC - 51 percent, SOCAR Turkey Enerji - 7 percent, Botas - 30 percent, and BP - 12 percent.

The launching ceremony of the first stage of the Southern Gas Corridor project was held in Baku on May 29.

The gas from the Azerbaijani Shah Deniz field has already gone through the first segment of the Southern Gas Corridor - from the Sangachal terminal to the expanded South Caucasus Pipeline.

The Southern Gas Corridor, which costs more than $40 billion, is one of the priority projects for the EU and provides for the transportation of 10 billion cubic meters of Azerbaijani gas from the Caspian region through Georgia and Turkey to Europe.