Wirtschaftsblatt: "TAP is becoming more interesting for energy companies"

The international energy giants are becoming more and more interested in the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) project after the failure of the South Stream project, Wirtschaftsblatt reports.

Italian gas company Snam elaborates its plans to join the consortium of the TAP project, which is to deliver Caspian gas via Turkey, Greece and Albania to the south of Italy.

The Italians are going to invest 400 million euros and to secure a 20% stake in the project.

Some companies, which had been engaged in the project initially, are showing a willingness to sell some of their shares. According to the newspaper, these companies are Statoil and British Petroleum, each has a 20% stake in the TAP.

But the Snam concern can count on the support of the Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. "I do not see any problems in new shareholders joining the project," Wirtschaftsblatt cited President Aliyev's words during his recent visit to Italy.

"The TAP is a key project for gas provision. The level of profit for exporters of gas is reducing, so logistical costs must be reduced as much as possible. For this reason, a universal, smoothly-functioning European gas network is urgently needed," Snam CEO Carlo Malacarne said.

The publication notes Snam's solid economic results in the financing of its international projects. In the first half of 2015 the turnover increased by 3.8% compared to the same period last year, amounting 1.8 billion euros. The company's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) amounted to 1.4 billion euros, and investments amounting to 559 million euros have been made for the first six months of this year. The share prices of Snam Shares increased in connection with the plans to participate in the TAP project.

Background information from VK: Azerbaijan is playing a major role in the implementation of the Southern Gas Corridor project, which will allow Europe to diversify sources of supply of hydrocarbons and boost energy security, and allow Azerbaijan to find a new market in Europe. In the framework of the supply of Azerbaijani gas to the European market, the final investment decision on the second stage of the Shah Deniz project was adopted on December 17, 2013, which will enable to ensure the supply of up to 10 billion cubic meters of Azerbaijani gas a year to the European market, and 6 billion cubic meters will be delivered to Turkey annually.

The contract on the development of the Shah Deniz offshore field was signed on June 4, 1996. Its proven reserves are 1.2 trillion cubic meters of gas and 240 million tons of condensate.

The gas within the second stage of field development will be exported to Turkey and the European markets by expanding the South Caucasus gas pipeline and the construction of the Trans-Anatolian (TANAP) and Trans-Adriatic (TAP) gas pipelines. It is expected that the gas will flow through the Trans-Adriatic gas pipeline from the Caspian region via northern Greece and Albania to the south of Italy, where the pipeline will be connected with the existing gas supply network.