European Commission approves Greece-TAP deal

European Commission on Thursday approved the deal between Greece and the Trans Adriatic Pipeline, ruling it was in line with EU state aid rules. 

The Trans Adriatic Pipeline with an initial capacity of 10 billion cubic meters per year will bring gas from Azerbaijan’s Shah Deniz II field to the European Union market from 2020 onwards, the commission said in a statement.

The pipeline will run from the Greek border via Albania to Italy, under the Adriatic Sea, and TAP plans an investment of €5.6 billion over five years in the project.

Trans Adriatic Pipeline is a joint venture between BP (20 percent), SOCAR (20 percent), Snam (20 percent), Fluxys (19 percent), Enagás (16 percent) and Axpo (5 percent).

Margrethe Vestager, Commissioner in charge of competition policy, said the project “will bring new gas to the EU and increase the security of energy supply for Southeast Europe.”

Maroš Šefčovič, Vice-President responsible for Energy Union, added that the TAP agreement is a step towards completing the Southern Gas Corridor.

Under the agreement with Greek authorities, TAP will construct and operate the pipeline and will receive a state aid in form of a specific tax regime for 25 years from the start of commercial operations.

LNG World News Staff