Azernews.Az

Azerbaijani state oil company SOCAR intends to retain 51 percent of its share in the Trans-Anatolian gas pipeline (TANAP), SOCAR head Rovnag Abdullayev told reporters on Thursday.

TANAP is a proposed Azerbaijani-Turkish project that envisages construction of a pipeline from the eastern border of Turkey to the country's western border.

SOCAR holds 80 per cent in the TANAP project, while Turkish stated-owned BOTAS company has a 20 per cent stake.

Abdullayev said Turkey will own 20 percent of the equity. The remaining 29 percent will be distributed among the new shareholders.

Such energy giants as Total, BP and Statoil have already appealed to acquire shares in the project, he added.

Azerbaijan and Turkey signed an intergovernmental agreement on the implementation of the TANAP project in late June.

Initial capacity of the 2,000-kilometer (1,240 mile) pipeline is expected to be 16 billion cubic meters per year. The link may carry 10 billion cubic meters of gas a year to the EU from Shah Deniz, the biggest Azerbaijani gas deposit, while Turkey will buy 6 billion cubic meters.

Earlier, SOCAR President Rovnag Abdullayev said TANAP is interested in attracting new participants with available gas volumes. He said work was underway upon an agreement on the distribution of shares in the project.

Abdullayev also said that the proposals of many companies involved in the development of gas fields in Azerbaijan as well as other companies outside the country are being considered. A decision on the stakes will be taken depending on the volumes of gas transportation by companies and other issues, he said.

Bud Fackrell, who is responsible for BP Turkey's activities in Azerbaijan, said earlier that the British oil giant intends to buy part of SOCAR's stake in TANAP.

But he did not say how much of SOCAR's share the company intends to acquire, adding that the issue will be discussed and a final decision will be made by mid-2013.