Salzgitter Mannesmann Bags TAP Offshore Pipe Package

Gemany’s Salzgitter Mannesmann International has won the contract to supply linepipe for the 105-km section offshore section of Trans Adriatic gas pipeline to deliver Caspian gas to Europe.

The company will supply submerged arc welding longitudinal (SAWL) 36-in- sections as well as buckle arrestors, coating and anodes. This contract award makes up more than 71,000 metric tons of offshore line pipe.

“With this appointment TAP has now awarded all onshore and offshore line-pipe contracts. The manufacturing process for these key project elements has already begun, which is in line with our project schedule,” said TAP managing director Ian Bradshaw.

The offshore section across the Adriatic Sea will connect Albania and southern Italy.

On April 15, TAP appointed Italy’s Saipem as contractor for building the offshore section of the pipeline. The contract includes also marine surveys, supply and installation of an offshore fibre optic cable, pre-commissioning activities and civil works at the landfalls in both Albania and Italy.

In March TAP awarded EPC contracts for pipe-laying the 760-km onshore sections across Greece and Albania; it awarded the onshore Italian contracts in December.

TAP’s co-ventures BP, Azerbaijan's state Socar,  European gas grid operators Snam, Fluxys and Enagas and the Swiss utility Axpo are aiming to start the pipeline in 2020 with the first gas delivery to Greece.

Gas from Shah Deniz 2 development in Azerbaijan will travel across Georgia, Turkey , Greece, Albania and the Adriatic sea before coming ashore in  southern  Italy.

Kama Mustafayeva