The final decision regarding an increase in the capacity of the TAP natural gas pipeline will depend on a market test to be conducted in 2023, the company managing the pipeline told the Athens-Macedonian News Agency, Report informs.
An increase in the capacity of the TAP natural gas pipeline is being planned to help reduce dependence on Russian gas in Southeastern Europe.
The company said the initial target was to increase gas deliveries to 12 billion cubic meters a year from 2022, up from roughly 8.0 billion in 2021, and to possibly double its capacity to 20 billion cubic meters a year.
An increase in natural gas imports from Azerbaijan was decided during a recent visit by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to Baku.
The operation of the TAP pipeline and especially its expansion will establish Greece as an energy hub for SE Europe and the EU as a whole, as the pipeline carries gas from Azerbaijan to Italy from the Greek-Turkish border, via Albania and an undersea pipeline.
The commercial operation of the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria will also be capable of supplying Bulgaria and other countries with which there are connections (North Macedonia, Romania etc.).
The trans-Adriatic gas pipeline transporting Azerbaijani natural gas to Europe has reached its maximum capacity over the past few days. The natural gas supply reaches 33 million cubic meters per day, which averages about 12 billion cubic meters per year. Also, 10.5 billion cubic meters of these volumes will be transported to Italy. The long-term goal is to double the capacity of the pipeline.
The construction of TAP was completed in October 2020. The total length of TAP is 878 km, of which 550 km passes through the northern part of Greece, 215 km through Albania, 105 km - along the bottom of the Adriatic Sea and 8 km - through the territory of Italy.
The TAP AG consortium is considering three scenarios for increasing the pipeline's capacity: limited - up to 14.4 billion cubic meters, partial - up to 17.1 billion cubic meters, and complete - up to 20 billion cubic meters per year.
Azerbaijani gas supplies to consumers in Italy, Greece and Bulgaria via TAP began on December 31, 2020.
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