Azernews.Az

Azerbaijan, Georgia and Romania on Wednesday signed an agreement on establishing a joint venture to transport Azerbaijan’s natural gas to Romania via Georgia and further to other European Union countries. The signing took place at a meeting held in the Georgian capital Tbilisi to discuss the project, which was attended by Azerbaijani Minister of Industry and Energy, Natig Aliyev, Georgia's Energy Minister Alexander Khetaguri and Romania's Economy Minister Adriean Videanu.
Compressed gas is to be transported through the Azerbaijan-Georgia-Romania Interconnection project, known as AGRI. The project envisions building a plant or a liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal over two to three years in Georgia and simultaneously another such terminal in the Romanian port of Constanta. The annual capacity of each of the facilities is estimated at 3-20 billion cubic meters. Another option is liquefying gas on the vessels by Georgia’s Black Sea coasts, for its deliveries to Romania, which will be used both for domestic consumption and for further exports to European markets. The project's capacity is expected to be 7 billion cubic meters of gas a year, of which Romania is expected to receive 2 billion cubic meters annually.
The Azerbaijani energy minister said the project is a new route for the country’s energy exports.
"By this route we will deliver our gas to Romania, without having to depend on anyone," Aliyev said. "By this route our gas could reach not only Romania but also the Black Sea countries – Ukraine and Bulgaria. At the same time, we can cross to the Mediterranean Sea through the Bosporus Straits. This is a new opportunity that has emerged for Azerbaijan."
According to the minister, the joint venture being set up to implement the project will begin operating in Romania within a month.
The Georgian energy minister said the JV will be engaged in drawing funds for implementing the project and developing its feasibility study. According to Khetaguri, the project is estimated at 4-6 billion euros. Potential sources of funding are different companies, the participating states and European Union institutions.
Azerbaijan’s minimal proven gas reserves are estimated at 2 trillion cubic meters. The country produces most of its gas from the giant Shahdaniz field in the Caspian Sea.
Romania's Adriean Videanu said Azerbaijani gas will allow to supply Europe with energy resources to a certain extent. "Romania intends to take an active part in the process and this project is part of that policy."*