“10 years ago Azerbaijan established an energy corridor from the Caspian Sea to the Mediterranean.
Now we all together are committed to construct a gas bridge between Caspian and Adriatic seas and beyond“
Yaqub Eyyubov,
First Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan
Statement of the First Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan Yaqub Eyyubov at the TAP Construction Inauguration Ceremony:
“Your Excellency, Prime-Minister of Greece, Dear Excellencies,
Dear Shareholders and Management of TAP, Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,
It is my privilege to be here today to join the Government of Greece and representatives of Governments of Southern Gas Corridor countries and Vice President of the European Commission to participate in the Construction Inauguration Ceremony of the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline.
The role of the SGC is not only to serve as an alternative transportation infrastructure but also as an alternative source of energy which would significantly support the intention of the European countries specifically in the South East Europe to diversify supply sources for their markets and increase their energy security. 10 years ago Azerbaijan established an energy corridor from the Caspian Sea to the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. Now we all together are committed to construct a gas bridge between Caspian and Adriatic seas and beyond. The original source for SGC will be gas from giant Shah Deniz field which has more than 1.2 trillion cubic meters of gas of proven reserves. However, the Southern Gas Corridor is a new energy paradigm and opportunity that can facilitate delivery of increased volumes of gas from different sources, not only from other fields in Azerbaijan but from Central Asia, Iraq, and the Eastern Mediterranean. I would like to specifically state that it is NOT competing with existing suppliers, but rather serves as an alternative option which creates opportunities for delivering new volumes via new route.
In order to provide a regular update on the project progress and ensure close coordination among all stakeholders and along the entire value chain the Advisory Council of the Southern Gas Corridor was established in 2015 by the initiative of the President of Azerbaijan Mr. Ilham Aliyev and the Vice-President of the EC Maroš Šefčovič. This is a unique format where all the members of the Southern Gas Corridor, European Commission, United States and financial institutions get together to review what has been done so far and to identify urgent issues to be expeditiously addressed and resolved jointly in the most practical way. The 2nd Ministerial meeting of the AC was held in February this year in Baku and we are very glad that new countries from the South East Europe, in particular, Montenegro and Croatia, have also participated.
The Southern Gas Corridor even at its first stage is linking a number of markets in Europe that have not been linked before, such as Greece, Albania and Italy. We are confident that the project will be followed by additional gas interconnectors in Europe, such as Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria, which will become an important part of the SGC. One spur of the Southern Gas Corridor that seems to be gathering significant political support is the implementation of the Ionian-Adriatic Pipeline which would extend the edges of the SGC deeper into the Balkans, to new countries of the region which need urgent access to alternative sustainable and affordable energy.
Once again I would like to thank the Government of Greece for inviting us to participate in today’s ceremony. I congratulate all the participants with this strategic milestone in the Southern Gas Corridor project and express my confidence that as a result of our joint efforts the construction work will be completed within the planned schedule and first molecules of gas from Azerbaijan will reach the borders of the European Union in 2020. Thank you.”