Turkey ‘approves environmental impact assessment for TurkStream offshore section’

ANKARA/AMSTERDAM

At the backside of the Pioneering Spirit vessel, the pipeline is lowered to the bottom of the sea by a stinger

The Turkish Environment and Urbanization Ministry has announced the final approval of the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for the offshore section of the TurkStream Offshore Gas Pipeline, the pipeline authority said on Oct. 3 in a statement.

A thorough consultation process resulted in the final EIA, read the statement, reminding that after publishing the draft EIA on June 21, the Turkish government established a Review and Evaluation Commission (REC), consisting of 23 relevant institutions and authorities.

“On July 4, the Environment and Urbanization Ministry organized a meeting with REC members in order to ask questions and provide feedback on the draft EIA. Subsequently, the REC members submitted their opinions on the draft EIA in writing. The EIA has been amended in line with these opinions. All REC members have now provided a positive opinion on the EIA to the Turkish Environment and Urbanization Ministry,” it added.

The approved EIA is set to go online.

The EIA consists of information on the potential environmental and social impacts of the offshore section of the TurkStream project. 

It also includes recommendations for the mitigation of the potential adverse impacts and enhancement of the beneficial ones, according to the statement.

In preparation of the EIA, field surveys were conducted to identify, assess and document potential environmental and social impacts of project activities, it read, adding that as part of the assessment, various Turkish stakeholders, including government experts, local community representatives and fishing groups, were consulted.

The EIA was prepared and submitted by ELC Group Inc. on behalf of the South Stream Transport B.V., the project owner of the offshore section of the TurkStream Project, according to the statement.

The first string of the gas pipeline is intended for Turkish consumers, while the second string will deliver gas to southern and southeastern Europe. Each line will have the capacity of 15.75 billion cubic meters of gas per year.

Gazprom said in May it had started the construction of a gas pipeline under the Black Sea to Turkey that also aims to provide gas to the European Union.

The company plans to complete both lines by late 2019.