ANKARA
The Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline is not only a project for energy, but also one for peace, Turkey's Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has said.
Speaking on Tuesday in the Turkish capital of Ankara during the signing ceremony of a pipeline supply agreement for the Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP), Davutoglu said: "The relations between Turkey and Azerbaijan are vital, as these countries complete against each other both geographically and in terms of energy potential.”
He said nearly 80 percent of the project's pipelines will be produced domestically, adding: “This proves the technical capacity of Turkish industry."
TANAP is the Turkish phase of the Southern Gas Corridor project which will carry gas from the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea to Turkey.
The initial capacity of the Southern Gas Corridor is planned to be 16 billion cubic meters of natural gas.
'Supply problems'
Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Taner Yildiz said during the ceremony: "There are four stages of the Southern Gas Corridor that are estimated to cost around $45 billion."
“The first phase is the pipeline from production fields to the Georgian border. The second phase is the pipeline in Georgia. The third is the TANAP, passing through Turkey to the Greek border. The fourth is from Greece to Italy."
He went on: "TANAP is not only about Turkey's energy supply security but, at the same time, this project is a step towards a solution to EU's natural gas supply problems."
According to Eurostat, the EU's statistics agency, Russia is the EU's main supplier of natural gas.
The EU is continuing to seek ways of reducing its dependency on Russian gas.
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