TANAP to hold talks with foreign companies on partnerships: Turkish minister

ISTANBUL - Reuters

CİHAN Photo

Turkey and its partners in the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) will hold talks with “one or two” foreign companies for possible partnerships, Turkey’s Energy Minister said on May 4.

Energy Minister Taner Yıldız said he could not name the companies involved, as they were publicly traded in an energy panel in Istanbul. 

British oil major BP said in March that it expected to become a stakeholder in the multi-billion dollar TANAP project within two months, having previously said in 2013 it wanted a 12 percent stake in the venture.

Azeri firm SOCAR currently holds a 58 percent stake in TANAP - which aims to reduce Europe’s reliance on Russian gas - while Turkish pipeline firm BOTAŞ raised its stake to 30 percent from 20 percent in 2014. 

The groundbreaking ceremony for the $10 billion TANAP project to pipe Azeri gas to Western markets was made in the eastern province of Kars on March 17, in line with a plan which could help the EU reduce its dependence on Russian energy even as Moscow touts its own alternative.