TAP Completes FEED, Switzerland

March 25, 2013

TAP has reached another significant milestone in the project development by completing the Front End Engineering Design (FEED) stage. This prepares the natural gas pipeline project for the next steps including detailed engineering, start of tendering for steel pipes and construction services.

TAP’s engineering team has now finalised the definition of key technical parameters for the planned pipeline such as the optimal routing onshore and offshore, specification of the pipeline material, and design of valves, crossings, and compressor stations. The comprehensive FEED documentation also describes the logistical effort required for the TAP construction including resources, machinery, time and infrastructure necessary to build the over 800 km long pipeline across Greece, Albania and the Adriatic Sea with a landfall in southern Italy.

One of the main objectives of FEED is to ensure the constructability of the pipeline and to provide solid technical solutions to avoid environmentally protected areas, and also to identify and propose measures for avoiding potential risks to the pipeline’s safety.

To complete the FEED, TAP mobilized the world-class engineering expertise of two of its shareholders, Norwegian Statoil and German E.ON Ruhrgas, which are the leading specialists in the implementation of onshore and offshore pipeline projects across the globe.

TAP, together with Statoil and E.ON New Build and Technology, involved over 40 subcontractors and 200 engineers to conclude the FEED. During the past few years they have conducted over 150 technical missions, including offshore and onshore surveys. Overall, TAP’s technical team analysed in detail over 10,000 km of terrain to identify the most optimal pipeline route to transport Shah Deniz gas to Europe.

Sigurd Hamre, TAP’s Project Development Director, said: “We can be proud of the quality of TAP’s Front End Engineering Design. The comprehensive and detailed technical documentation clearly demonstrates that we are developing the project according to the highest international requirements, with special attention to safety and minimizing risks.”

Kjetil Tungland, TAP’s Managing Director, said: “Completion of FEED is a major achievement for TAP and another confirmation of our technical excellence. It has involved a huge amount of engineering work to analyse in detail all the technical aspects of the pipeline route and to identify the most feasible and cost-effective transport solution for Shah Deniz gas to Europe. Once again, TAP has hard facts to prove that our project is on schedule and fully aligned with the Shah Deniz development.”

The FEED report constitutes a part of the Decision Support Package, which will be submitted by TAP to the Shah Deniz Consortium on the 31st of March 2013. The Consortium plans to make a decision on the preferred gas transportation route to Europe by June 2013.

Completion of FEED allows TAP to start preparing for the next phase – Detailed Engineering – which will include tendering for steel pipes and construction services. The construction of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline is planned to start in late 2014 and will be completed by 2018, in time for the first gas coming on stream from Shah Deniz II in Azerbaijan.

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LNG World News Staff, March 25, 2013; Image: TAP