The Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) and its existing shareholders EGL (42.5%), Statoil (42.5%) and E.ON Ruhrgas (15%) have reached an agreement with members of the Shah Deniz Consortium to secure funding for the TAP project. The agreement also includes an option for the Shah Deniz shareholders to take up to 50% equity in TAP. These funds will contribute towards continued work in several important areas during the period running up to the final routing decision, expected in 2013.
TAP will transport natural gas from the giant Shah Deniz II development in Azerbaijan, shipping it via Greece and Albania, across the Adriatic Sea to Southern Italy, and further into Western Europe. Designed to expand transportation capacity from 10 bcm/year to 20 bcm/year, depending on supply and demand, TAP will open up the so-called Southern Gas Corridor, enhancing Europe’s energy security by contributing to the diversification of the region’s gas supplies.