By Azernews

By Leman Mammadova

Germany welcomes energy projects that provide transportation of Azerbaijani gas to Europe.

Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) is very important for diversification of energy supplies in Germany and the European Union (EU), Thomas Bareiss, State Secretary at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy of Germany has told Trend.

“For the first time in history, the SGC will provide EU countries direct access to gas from the Caspian region. It also means that the Azerbaijan’s role, as a supplier of gas and a transit country for Europe, will increase. Thus, entering a new market, Azerbaijan will benefit from it,” Bareiss said.

“Azerbaijan will be a key supplier of gas through the Southern Gas Corridor and, therefore, plays a critical role in this project’s success," he added.

Bareiss stressed that Azerbaijan is not only Germany’s major economic partner in the South Caucasus, but also an important partner in Germany’s efforts to strengthen its energy security.

He reminded that bilateral trade amounted to just under two billion euros in 2018.

“Azerbaijan exported over three million tons of crude oil to Germany in 2018, thereby becoming the eighth largest oil supplier to the country,” Bareiss said, adding that “Germany seeks to further expand these relations on the principles of confidential cooperation and the rule of law,” he said.

He noted that the volume of investments of German companies in Azerbaijan amounted to 111 million euros in 2017, according to the German Bundesbank.  “We want to increase these figures for the benefit of both countries through the development of bilateral relations.”

The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Germany reached $1.4 billion in 2018, about $780 million of which accounted for the export of Azerbaijani products and $660 million - for the import of German goods. The main share of Azerbaijan's exports to Germany is oil and oil products.

Presently, Azerbaijan plays significant role in improving regional and global energy security. The favorable geographical position of Azerbaijan and its energy resources are vital factors to establish favorable condition for exports of oil and gas and act as a transport connector among neighboring countries.

The SGC, $40 billion worth project, envisages the transportation of 10 billion cubic meters of gas to Turkey and Europe through the pipeline, which will be operated within the second stage of the Shah Deniz gas condensate field project in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea.

The SGC consists of four projects: Shah Deniz 2, Expansion of South Caucasus Pipeline (Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum), the Trans Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) and Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP).

The launching ceremony of the first stage of the SGC was held in Baku on May 29, 2018, while opening ceremony of TANAP was held on June 12, 2018 in the Turkish city of Eskisehir. Thus, the first gas from the Azerbaijani Shah Deniz field has already gone through the first segment of the SGC - from the Sangachal terminal to the expanded South Caucasus Pipeline.