Baku, July 10, AZERTAC

Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) consortium expects 100 percent of pipes in Greece and Albania to be lowered into ground by late 2019, TAP AG Managing Director Luca Schieppati said.

He said that at present, 98 percent of the pipes are in the ground in Greece and Albania. “By the end of the year this figure will reach 100 percent,” he added.

TAP project is one of the priority energy projects for the European Union (EU). The project envisages transportation of gas from Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz Stage 2 to the EU countries.

Connecting with the Trans Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) at the Greek-Turkish border, TAP will cross Northern Greece, Albania and the Adriatic Sea before coming ashore in Southern Italy to connect to the Italian natural gas network.

TAP's groundbreaking ceremony was held in Thessaloniki, Greece on May 17, 2016. Azerbaijani gas will be delivered to Europe in 2020.

Once built, TAP will offer a direct and cost-effective transportation route opening up the vital Southern Gas Corridor, a 3,500-kilometer long gas value chain stretching from the Caspian Sea to Europe.

TAP shareholders include BP (20 percent), SOCAR (20 percent), Snam S.p.A. (20 percent), Fluxys (19 percent), Enagás (16 percent) and Axpo (5 percent).