Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has said Ankara and Baku have agreed to accelerate the Trans-Anatolian Pipeline project (TANAP).
Speaking in the Azerbaijani capital on December 3, Davutoglu said the aim was to have the gas project completed before the planned 2018.
TANAP is the central link in the EU-backed Southern Gas Corridor, a network of existing and planned pipelines designed to diversify Caspian energy export routes and reduce European dependence on Russian gas.
Estimated to cost $10 billion, TANAP will tie into the existing South Caucasus pipeline that already supplies Azerbaijani gas to Georgia and east Turkey, and transport gas over a distance of 1,850 kilometers to Turkey’s western border with the EU.
From there, gas is expected to enter the planned Trans-Adriatic Pipeline crossing Greece and Albania to Italy.
Based on reporting by Reuters