According to officials from Azerbaijan鈥檚 state energy company SOCAR, Total and E.ON are planning to withdraw from the Trans Adriatic gas pipeline (TAP) project, which is designed to decrease Europe鈥檚 reliance on Russia for natural gas.
During the Caspian Oil & Gas Conference in Baku, Azerbaijan, Vagif Aliyev, Investment Department, SOCAR, told local press: 鈥淭otal and E.ON plan to withdraw from the TAP project.鈥� A second senior official from SOCAR confirmed this information.
The Trans Adriatic pipeline (TAP) aims to transport natural gas from the giant Shah Deniz II field in Azerbaijan. The 870 km (545 mile) pipeline will connect with the Trans Anatolian pipeline (TANAP) near the Turkish-Greek border at Kipoi, run across Greece, Albania and the Adriatic Sea to southern Italy, and further to western Europe.
The current shareholders of the TAP project are BP (20%), SOCAR (20%), Statoil (20%), Fluxys (16%), Total (10%), E.ON (9%) and Axpo (5%).
Edited from various sources by