Hürriyet Daily News - At least an investment of USD 8 billion will be made in Türkiye during the construction of a pipeline that will carry Azeri gas through Türkiye, offering a number of opportunities for local companies to benefit, State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR)Türkiye’s president has told daily Hürriyet.
The Trans-Anatolian Gas Pipeline (TANAP), construction of which is expected to start by the end of 2014, is scheduled to begin operations by 2018.
As the tender process for the pipes’ procurement has been initiated, the impetus that will emerge in the infrastructure sector in Türkiye has raised excitement. Türkiye’s energy minister said 28 companies, nine of which are local, have applied for preliminary qualification for the pipes to be used on the pipeline.
Authorities will begin to review applications by Aug. 27, and qualified bidders will be invited to the tender.
Kenan Yavuz, the president of the Turkish arm of Azeri energy giant SOCAR, which is also one of the partners of TANAP, said 2 million tons of pipes will be used for the project.
“The project has a high added-value in terms of locality, because of the pipes to be used and the employment to be created in the construction of the line,” he said.
TANAP will carry 16 billion cubic meters of gas per year, with 6 billion to be delivered to Türkiye and rest to Europe.
SOCAR, Petroleum Pipeline Corporation of Türkiye (BOTAS) and Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO) signed the deal on TANAP last November, with SOCAR being the major shareholder with 80 percent of stakes while the remaining 20 percent held by Turkish companies. The project was later partnered by European energy companies BP, Statoil and Total, which acquired a combined 29 percent of shares from SOCAR.