EU: Southern Gas Corridor to strengthen relations with Azerbaijan

Implementation of the Southern Gas Corridor project will further strengthen EU cooperation with the countries of the Caspian Basin and in particular Azerbaijan, Energy Counsellor of the EU delegation to Azerbaijan Edyta Nowak said on Monday speaking at a conference entitled “Caspian oil and gas week” held in Baku.

"The global energy map is changing at an unprecedented pace. Despite the increasing role of renewable and alternative sources of energy, oil and gas remain the dominant positions and that will remain such until 2035," she said.

According to her, market participants have to revise their energy strategy in response to the growing role of the United States, Australia and other relatively new suppliers and players.

According to the forecasts Europe's dependence on oil and gas imports will increase up to 2030, the Counsellor said.

"BP Energy Outlook says that shale gas which is booming is not enough. The future of nuclear energy in Europe is also undetermined after the events at the Fukushima plant," Nowak stressed.

"The EU is considering forecasts on energy consumption by 2050, according to which the proportion of alternative and renewable energy will increase to 55 per cent, but at the same time highlights the important role of gas in securing energy," Nowak said.

According to the Counsellor, all of this suggests the importance of the Caspian region to the EU.

"The countries of the Caspian basin namely Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan provide 11 per cent of Europe's oil imports. We would like to see the same pattern in relation to the gas supply in the future," she said.

At present as Nowak noted, the EU's attention in the search for new ways to deliver gas is focused on Azerbaijan and in particular the giant Shah Deniz oil field which lays the foundation for the Southern Gas Corridor.

"Considerable work was conducted on its implementation and important agreements signed. By the end of this year, a final investment decision will be made on the second phase of development of the Shah Deniz field. I want to emphasise that both the EU and Azerbaijan and other participants of the project are firmly focused on its successful implementation and strengthening cooperation ", the Counsellor said.

The Southern Gas Corridor is the project which will give opportunities to Europe to diversify its sources of hydrocarbon supplies and increase its energy security and will give to Azerbaijan a chance to develop a new market in Europe. The Southern Gas Corridor is a large project designed to meet Europe's gas needs for decades to come.

The gas which will be produced in the second phase of the Shah Deniz field is considered as the main source for the Southern Gas Corridor. A consortium of the Azerbaijani Shah Deniz gas condensate field development has chosen the TAP project as a gas transportation route to European markets. (Trend)