Turkmenistan attended 4th meeting of Sothern Gas Corridor Advisory Council
Turkmenistan's involvement in Southern gas corridor (SGC) and the implementation of the Trans-Caspian pipeline project remain among the tops of the European Union's energy agenda.
This idea has been clearly expressed in the statement of Vice-President of the European Commission for Energy Union Maros Sefcovic, voiced in Baku at the final press conference of the fourth ministerial meeting of the SGC Advisory Council on 15 February.
“European side maintains regular contacts and holds meetings with the Turkmen side in connection with the implementation of the Trans-Caspian Gas Pipeline Project, through which it will be possible to supply Turkmen gas to Europe”, said Sefcovic.
The European Commissioner praised the role of Azerbaijan in finding ways to connect its Caspian neighbor to the gas corridor.
“We agreed to continue negotiations on this issue”, he added.
The regular gathering of SGC Advisory Council was attended by senior energy officials of Greece, Bulgaria, Italy, Albania, Montenegro, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece, Romania, as well as high-ranking representatives of USA and Great Britain.
Turkmenistan, debuted at the forum, was represented by Yagshigeldy Kakayev, presidential advisor on oil and gas issues.
Major financial institutions, including the World Bank, the European Investment Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the International Finance Corporation, also sent their delegates to Baku.
President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan and Maros Šefčovič addressed the audience at the inaugural session.
The meeting was further continued by the plenary sessions, which discussed the current status of SGC projects and their financial support.
3,500-km lengthy SGC, worth over US $ 41 billion with the designed capacity of up to 16 billion cu m, consists of several infrastructure elements – the second phase of the Azerbaijani Shah Deniz field, to become the raw material base of the pipeline; the expansion of the South Caucasus pipeline system along the Azerbaijan-Georgia-Turkish border; the construction of the Trans-Anatolian gas pipeline (TANAP) from Turkey to Greece; and the laying of the Trans-Adriatic gas pipeline (TAP) via Greece-Albania-Italy route.
The Caspian energy resources, which will eventually fill up the corridor, can make a significant contribution to the diversification of routes and partners in energy scheme of European Union, importing currently 69% of its consumed natural gas.
In addition to the six countries directly involved - Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Greece, Albania, Italy - Romania and Bulgaria also want to join the project.
The start of gas supplies via the SGC is expected this summer. Initially, Azerbaijani gas will reach only Turkey, and, supposedly, European consumers will get it by 2020.
