EU negotiates with Azerbaijan on possible gas supplies

By Azernews

By Ayya Lmahamad

EU Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell has said that the European Union is negotiating possible gas supplies with the U.S., Qatar, and Azerbaijan in case Russia cuts its gas deliveries, the press service of the EU has reported.

"We are prepared in case diplomacy fails and we are looking at all options. This includes improving our resilience, including by working with partners like the U.S., Qatar, and Azerbaijan, on the issue of gas supply in case Russia decides to reduce or halt deliveries," he stated.

To recall, Azerbaijan started commercial gas supplies to Europe through the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) on December 31, 2020.

The Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), which is an extension of the Southern Gas Corridor that takes Azerbaijani natural gas to European markets, has transported 8.1 billion cubic meters of gas to Europe in 2021. Of the total amount of transported gas, over 6.8 billion cubic meters reached Italy and approximately 1.2 billion cubic meters were delivered to Greece and Bulgaria.

Earlier, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in his interview stated that about 19 billion cubic meters of Azerbaijani gas will be exported in 2022. Of this volume, more than 8 billion cubic meters will be exported to Turkey and more than 7 billion cubic meters to Italy. The remaining gas will be divided between Georgia, Bulgaria, and Greece.

The Southern Gas Corridor is an initiative of the European Commission for a natural gas supply route from Caspian and Middle Eastern regions to Europe. The route from Azerbaijan to Europe consists of the South Caucasus Pipeline, TANAP and TAP.