Trend: Statoil: TANAP could be 'viable alternative' to Nabucco

Azerbaijan-Turkish Trans Anatolian gas pipeline (TANAP) could be a "viable alternative" to the European-backed Nabucco project, Bloomberg reported with the reference to President of Statoil Azerbaijan Lars Sorensen.

Norwegian Statoil is one of the partners in consortium of Azerbaijani Shah Deniz gas field development, which has a 25.5-percent stake in it. The contract to develop the offshore Shah Deniz field was signed on June 4, 1996. Other participants of the agreement are: BP (operator) -- 25.5 per cent, NICO -- 10 per cent, Total -- 10 per cent, LukAgip -- 10 per cent, TPAO -- nine per cent and SOCAR-10 percent.

Azerbaijan and Turkey signed a memorandum of understanding to establish a consortium that will build a gas pipeline to supply gas from the Shah Deniz field to Europe through the Turkish territory. At present, BOTAS has a 20 percent stake in TANAP, and the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) -- 80-percent share.  MORE