Declaration on AGRI proves Baku's goal to be active energy player

/By AzerNews/

By Aynur Karimova

A joint declaration on supporting the development of the Azerbaijan-Georgia-Romania Interconnector project signed by Azerbaijan, Georgia and Romania on June 24, once again proves Azerbaijan's great ambitions to become a competitive and active player in the European energy market.

The document was inked at an inter-ministerial meeting in Bucharest, by Azerbaijani Energy Minister Natig Aliyev, his Romanian counterpart Andrei Dominic Gerea, and Georgian Deputy Energy Minister Mariam Valishvili.

Energy-rich Azerbaijan is keen on delivering its blue fuel to the European markets using various routes. The AGRI project is of great importance in this regard.

Azerbaijan, with its highly developed oil and gas sector, has been actively working towards the development of energy projects. Azerbaijan is working to ensure the delivery of its natural gas to European markets via the Southern Gas Corridor, which includes a number of pipeline projects, in particular Trans-Adriatic and Trans-Anatolian pipelines.

The country is also considering the transportation of its liquefied gas to Romania by way of the AGRI, a priority project for the EU.

AGRI is a part of the Southern Gas Corridor, which envisages the transportation of Azerbaijani gas to the Black Sea coast of Georgia via gas pipelines. Azerbaijani gas delivered to Georgia’s Black Sea coast will be liquefied at a special terminal and will then be delivered in tankers to a terminal at the Romanian port of Constanta.

The liquid gas will then be gasified and sent via the country’s gas infrastructure for consumption in Romania and other European countries.

According to preliminary estimates, the cost of the project will vary from 1.2 billion euros to 4.5 billion euros, depending on the capacity of the terminals, which could equal 2-8 billion cubic meters of gas per year.

The participants of the AGRI project are Azerbaijan's state energy giant SOCAR, Georgia's Oil and Gas Corporation, as well as Hungarian MVM and Romanian Romgaz.

The AGRI project became hot topic for discussions after the failure of the Russian South Stream project. This, in turn, prompted many countries in Central and South-Eastern Europe to think seriously about the need to diversify their gas supplies.

From this point of view, the AGRI project can be included in the final list of projects of common interest in the framework of the European Strategic Investment Fund.

The existence of such projects can be a good alternative and contribute to a more extensive network of gas supplies for European customers.

AGRI is expected to be beneficial for Europe, the gas demands of which is expected to increase by 2030, and Azerbaijan, which will be able to cover more countries and increase its ability to ensure their energy security.

Transit countries such as Georgia will be able to earn revenue as well by providing their territories for the transportation of energy resources.