The construction of one of the largest gas developments in the world -- the Shah Deniz 2 in the Caspian Sea -- will help increase European energy security by transferring Caspian gas resources for the very first time, operator BP said early November.
Construction of Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz 2 natural gas field, which will transfer natural gas from the Caspian Sea into Europe, is 80 percent complete, according to BP Turkey President Mick Stump.
The Shah Deniz gas field will boost natural gas to the Southern Gas Corridor through a 3,500-kilometer-long pipeline from the Caspian Sea into Europe.
The Southern Gas Corridor consists of a chain of new pipelines including the existing South Caucasus Pipeline (SCP) which will be expanded with a new parallel pipeline across Azerbaijan and Georgia. It also includes the South Caucasus Pipeline Expansion (SCPX) and the Trans Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) which will transport Shah Deniz gas across Turkey and the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) will take gas through Greece and Albania into Italy.
With the operation of pipelines in the Southern Gas Corridor, Europe will gain access to the pipeline network increasing its security of supplies.
BP Turkey President Mick Stump said that BP plans to complete the TANAP project on target for June 2018 and deliver 6 billion cubic meters of natural gas to Turkey as well as deliver natural gas to Europe in early 2020 via TAP.
He explained that almost half of the SCPX construction has been finished and TAP's construction has begun after it was inaugurated back in May 17 in Thessaloniki, Greece.
Azeri energy giant State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) holds a 58 percent interest in TANAP, Turkey's BOTAS has a 30 percent share while BP owns a 12 percent stake.
With an expected budget of $9.2 billion, TANAP's total capacity is planned to increase to 23 billion cubic meters (bcm) by 2023 and to 31 bcm by 2026.
BP is a 20 percent shareholder of TAP with SOCAR holding 20 percent, Snam at 20 percent, Fluxys with 19 percent , Enagas at 16 percent and Axpo with 5 percent.
-Security is main priority for BP
Protection of these billion dollar pipelines is important in terms of securing natural gas and/or oil supplies for end users.
"Security has always been an important priority for the pipelines ever since we built the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline which we have been operating for ten years," Stump said in reponse to the question of attacks on the Iranian gas pipeline a couple of weeks ago.
"The safety of our people, the environment, and our assets are a main priority for us. We have always made additional investments to protect our lines. For example, modern pipelines have intrusion detection systems, which can easily pick up a rabbit or person over the pipeline."
Stump said that the Iranian pipeline and TANAP differ in their geographical location and therefore their security risk.
"Clearly TANAP is a separate pipeline, and is a further distance from the affected areas while the relevant authorities work hard to maintain its security," Stump said.
"Pipelines are a critical part of the infrastructure in both Turkey and other countries. We work closely with the Turkish security forces, which do a good job looking after the pipelines. Obviously, we can never be complacent in the world. You try to make sure you are doing the best you can," he concluded.
(Anadolu Agency)
