How will TANAP gas pipeline be built?

TANAP Co company established between Azerbaijan SOCAR (80% share) and Turkish BOTAS (10%) and TPAO (10%) companies to build and operate the trans-Anatolian gas pipeline (TANAP) will soon invite an international tender for working out of the feasibility study of the pipeline, sources from the Azerbaijani government tols Turan.

The procedure of anouncement of the bidder and concluding of the contract will not take a lot of time. The gas pipeline route will be defined in parallel. Asked by Turan how the gas pipeline route could be determined, if Shah-Deniz consortium will make a final choice betwen TAP and Nabucco-West only in mid-2013, the same source explained that "in any route TANAP must be built through the European part of Turkey."

According to schedule of works of TANAP Co, the works on feasibility study must be completed by September 2013. Shah-Deniz consortium must make a final choice on the Azerbaijani gas deliveries to Europe in June 2013.

In quarter 4, 2013 the tender for construction of about 2000-km-long gas pipeline will be invited on the basis of feasibility study. Judging by all, the tender will be held on various lots (sections). Till the end of this year the tender winners will be determined and the contracts signed. The purchase of lands for the pipeline construction will start in 2014, the contracts for the pipe deliveries will be signed and the land works will be carried out. In the second half of 2014 it is planned to begin the first construction works within the TANAP project. The period between beginning of construction and putting the pipeline into operation is 36 months.

The pipeline diameter is 56 inches. At the first stage the carrying capacity of the pipeline will be 16 billion cub.m. a year and in the future it could be increased up to 31 billion cub.m. The carrying capacity of the pipeline will be increased at the expense of increase in capacity and number of compressor stations.

According to SOCAR's specialists, the cost of the first stage of TANAP construction will be 7-7.5 billion Euro. These calculations coincide with BP company's data, which was made last year for Nabucco project. It was announced for the first time then that Nabucco project (for Shah-Deniz with the carrying capacity of 16 billion cub.m.) that with the current prices the pipeline construction will cost 14-14.5 billion Euro.

* The package of commercial agreements on TANAP was signed on June 26, 2012 in Istanbul.-0-