The Trans Anatolian gas pipeline (TANAP). which will connect Georgia with Greece and Bulgaria. will start operating June 12. announced the Turkish Minister of Energy and Natural Resources. Berat Albayrak.
The piping. of 340 kilometers long. will receive fluid of the South Gas Corridor (SGC) and the South Caucasus Gas Pipeline (SCP) which cross Azerbaijan and Georgia respectively. and will make easier the supply to Europe through the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) which will circulate from Greece and Albania to Italy. crossing the Adriatic Sea.
The multinational project aims to reduce the European dependence on Russian gas. using for that the supply from the Shah Deniz site of Azerbaijan in the Caspian Sea.
In a first phase. TANAP will introduce 6 billion cubic meters (bcm) of gas yearly. so Turkish imports. set at 6.6 bcm by Albayrak. will be covered in a 90 percent.
The gas pipeline capacity will increase up to 16 bcm per year from 2010. to be raised gradually up to 31 bcm. according to the company that is managing the piping.
Turkish Minister also indicated Turkey will do its first oil and gas drilling in deep water of the Mediterranean this summer.