700 million USD to be invested in Shah Deniz gas in Georgia
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400-700 million USD to be invested in Georgia in the framework of constructionfor the second stage of development of the Shah Deniz gas field in the Caspian Sea, offshore from Azerbaijan, that opens Europe for Azerbaijani gas.
The Shah Deniz consortium today announced the final investment decision (FID) for the second stage of development in Baku. The signing ceremony was also attended by the Georgian delegation, headed by Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, at the Heydar Aliyev Centre.
16 billion cubic metres per year (bcma) of gas produced from the giant Shah Deniz field will be carried some 3,500 kilometers to provide energy for millions of consumers in Georgia, Turkey, Greece, Bulgaria and Italy.
According to the agreement, Georgia will have the opportunity to purchase the 5% of the transit gas through the pipeline with the preferential tariff that will compose more than one billion bcma per year.
The first gas flow is targeted for late 2018, with sales to Georgia and Turkey. The first deliveries to Europe will follow approximately a year later.
According to Georgia's Energy Minister Kakha Kaladze, it is planned that 55 kilometers of gas pipeline will be on Georgian territory.
"During the construction, more than 2 thousand people will be employed and after the project completion, 130 people will have permanent jobs " Kaladze told journalists.|/
The total cost of the Shah Deniz Stage 2 and South Caucasus Pipeline (SCP) Expansion projects will be around 28 billion USD.
Georgian delegation members have not excluded that in the nearest future, we could change the energy map of the entire region, including the EU.
"Shah Deniz 2 and the Southern Corridor pipelines will not only change the energy map, but will give customers in Europe, direct access to the gas resources of Azerbaijan for the first time. EU already has the sources of the gas like Norway, North Africa and Russia but Azerbaijan gas will diversify the market and will shorten the dependence on a separate provider. That will increase the sovereignty of each EU country" said Georgia's Ministry of Economy Giorgi Kvirikashvili.|/
Participants to the agreement are: BP (operator) - 28.8 percent, Statoil - 15.5 percent, NICO - 10 percent, Total - 10 percent, Lukoil - 10 percent, TPAO - nine percent, SOCAR - 16.7 percent.
Azerbaijani’s President Ilham Aliyev believes Georgia and Azerbaijan's territorial integrity has been violated, and the norms of international laws have been dishonoured.
"I am pleased that we do not have any obstacles and a difference of opinions in any issues with Georgia.We are friends, we are brothers and our successful meeting and visit today is a successful step for our dynamic development in future,” Aliyev said in Tbilisi.
Georgia is taking measures for the sake of safeguarding the country’s natural gas supply.
The US Ambassador to Georgia Ian Kelly believes Georgia should not be dependent on one source of energy.
Azerbaijan is increasing the amount of natural gas it supplies to Georgia almost two-fold. Georgia will receive an additional 500 million cubic meters of natural gas from Azerbaijan, Georgia's main gas supplier, bringing the amount it receives to 1.3 billion cubic metres (m3) per year.
Prime Minister of Azerbaijani Artur Rasizade is in Georgia’s capital Tbilisi today to meet with high officials and discuss the close partnership the two nations enjoy.
Energy ministers from the Southern Gas Corridor member-states, including Georgian Minister Kakha Kaladze, gathered today in Baku to attend the Third Ministerial Meeting of the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) Advisory Council.
Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia has welcomed the delivery of Azerbaijani gas to Europe via Georgia from the Shah Deniz field as the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) has began operations earlier today.