SGC project's implementation to be great success for Azerbaijan
By Aynur Karimova
The implementation of the Southern Gas Corridor project envisaging the transportation of blue fuel to the European markets by Azerbaijan will become a great success.
This statement was made by Shailendra Mohite, a senior engineer at Kuwait Petroleum International Ltd. on September 29.
He told Trend that the Southern Gas Corridor project will enable European countries to diversify their gas supply sources. The Trans-Anatolian and Trans-Adriatic pipeline projects which are the parts of the Southern Gas Corridor are being implemented on time.
He also pointed out the big energy potential of the whole Caspian Sea region with Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan as other major players.
"However, the region has some problems related to transportation of resources via tankers, because the Caspian Sea is a landlocked sea, and therefore, the pipeline supplies will be the main way for gas transportation in the region," he said.
The Southern Gas Corridor is arguably the global oil and gas industry’s most significant and ambitious undertaking yet. The corridor is a complex challenge involving many different stakeholders, including seven governments and 11 companies.
The project envisages the transportation of the gas extracted at the giant Shah Deniz field in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea. Shah Deniz Stage 2 gas will make a 3,500 kilometer journey from the Caspian Sea into Europe. This requires upgrading the existing infrastructure and the development of a chain of new pipelines.
The existing South Caucasus Pipeline will be expanded with a new parallel pipeline across Azerbaijan and Georgia, while the Trans-Anatolian pipeline will transport Shah Deniz gas across Turkey to meet the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline, which will take gas through Greece and Albania into Italy.
The Southern Gas Corridor is set to change the energy map of the entire region, connecting gas supplies in the Caspian to markets in Europe for the very first time.
The first gas supplies through the corridor to Georgia and Turkey are given a target date of late 2018. Gas deliveries to Europe are expected just over a year after the first gas is produced offshore in Azerbaijan.
The Southern Gas Corridor pipeline system has been designed to be scalable to twice its initial capacity to accommodate additional gas supplies in the future.
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Aynur Karimova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Aynur_Karimova
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