Russia's Gazprom has approved a new route for a gas pipeline across the Black Sea to Turkey.
Gazprom had been due to build, in partnership with Eni, Wintershall and EDF, the South Stream pipeline, from Russia, across the North Sea, to Bulgaria and on to Italy. However, the plan was put on ice last year, with Russian president Vladimir Putin citing European opposition. There had been tension over the pipeline around EU anti-competition rules, because Gazprom being the only supplier to the pipeline.
The latest move will see the pipeline re-routed to Turkey, where gas could then also be piped to Greece, with Gazprom taking on the offshore section construction of the project itself, having bought out the South Stream partners late in 2014. Gazprom says first gas deliveries could be in December 2016, as works had already started at the Russkaya compressor station, with one string providing 15.75 billion cu m to Turkey.
Works were already well underway to build South Stream. Italian offshore contractor Saipem had mobilized for the first offshore pipelaying phase of the project, at Burgas port in Bulgaria, where pipe has been welded ready for laying. Almost 300 thousand tons of pipes had already been supplied for the first offshore string. Allseas had also been contracted to work on the project.
Turkey currently receives Russian natural gas via the Blue Stream pipeline, across the Black Sea, which some have suggested should be upgraded instead of a new route being built, and the Trans-Balkan gas pipelines, which run through the Balkan states, but have faced disruptions due to tensions with Ukraine. Turkey is also due to receive gas from Azerbaijan via the Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP), due to come onstream in 2019, and which will connect with the Trans Adriatic Pipeline, on to Italy.
Today, Gaprom said, during a meeting in Turkish capital Ankara with Taner Yildiz, Turkish Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, a new route had been agreed for a four-string pipeline with 63 billion cu m/year capacity.
Some 660km of the pipeline’s route will be laid within the old corridor of South Stream and 250km within a new corridor towards the European part of Turkey.
Gazprom will work with Turkey's Botas on the project, but Gazprom wlil be solely responsible for the offshore section, it said.
An Intergovernmental Agreement on the gas pipeline is expected to be signed in Q2 this year.
Turkey is Gazprom’s second largest sales market behind Germany. In 2014 Gazprom supplied Turkey with 27.4 billion cubic meters of natural gas.
Gazprom said the new gas pipeline will have a capacity of 63 billion cubic meters, with 14 billion cubic meters slated for Turkish consumers (identical amount is being delivered via the Balkan Corridor) and nearly 50 billion cubic meters conveyed to the border between Turkey and Greece, where a delivery point will be arranged. The Russkaya compressor station being under construction in the Krasnodar Territory will serve as the pipeline starting point.