ISTANBUL
Turkish Energy & Natural Resources Minister Taner Yildiz has said that Turkey was part of the solution to Europe's natural gas problem.
Speaking at Caspian Forum in Istanbul on Thursday, Yildiz said that although the EU did not open the chapter heading on energy to negotiations in Turkey's membership process, Turkey was part of the solution to EU's natural gas problem.
Noting that TANAP (Trans Anatolian gas pipeline) was one of the projects Turkey had been carrying out as part of a solution, Yildiz said that the project was developed together with Azerbaijan.
Yildiz said that Shah Sea-II consortium would make a decision whether the pipeline would reach Austria via Bulgaria or Italy via Greece, adding that Turkey would not be a part of this decision but it would make contribution.
TANAP is a proposed natural gas pipeline from Azerbaijan through Turkey to Europe. If constructed, it would transport gas from the second stage of the Shah Sea gas field.
The project was announced on November 17, 2011 at the Third Black Sea Energy and Economic Forum in Istanbul. On December 26, 2011, Turkey and Azerbaijan signed a memorandum of understanding establishing a consortium to build and operate the pipeline.
