Turkey may consider selling Trans-Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) project shares to Iran, according to the country's Energy Minister Taner Yildiz.
"With suitable trading terms and the right strategic cooperation, Turkey or SOCAR would sell some of their TANAP shares to Iran," Yildiz was quoted by Daily Sabah as saying. The project, expected to be built before 2019, will transport gas from Azerbaijan's fields through Georgia and Turkey to Europe. The foundation for the pipeline was laid in March in the Turkish city of Kars.
It will be operated by SOCAR, which currently holds a 58 percent stake in the project. Turkey's state-owned energy operator BOTAS owns 30 percent and BP undertook 12 percent of the project with an agreement signed last week.
TANAP project's operating company will be headquartered in the Netherlands and the cost of the project is estimated at between $10 billion and $11 billion. The transport capacity, which will initially be 16 billion cubic meters per year, will increase gradually, first to 24 billion cubic meters and then to 31 billion cubic meters. The amount of natural gas to be transferred is expected to rise with Iranian participation.
