Micro-tunnel construction concluded in Italy

“In Italy, in line with the Single Authorisation permit granted by the Ministry of Economy on 20 May 2015, TAP continues to progress its secondary permitting activities,” TAP Head of Communications Lisa Givert told Azertac.“Construction activities began in May 2016. Over the summer of 2016, TAP carried out the unexploded ordnance (UXO) and archaeological surveys as well as phytosanitary treatment (spraying of olive trees along TAP’s route, in preparation of moving the olive trees). With the surveys conducted on the San Foca beach in early October and in the maquis in December, all geological studies for the micro-tunnel construction have been concluded.”TAP will transport natural gas from the giant Shah Deniz II field in Azerbaijan to Europe. The approximately 878 km long pipeline will connect with the Trans Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) at the Turkish-Greek border at Kipoi, cross Greece and Albania and the Adriatic Sea, before reaching Southern Italy.TAP's routing can facilitate gas supply to several South Eastern European countries, including Bulgaria, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and others. TAP's landfall in Italy provides multiple opportunities for further transport of Caspian natural gas to some of the largest European markets such as Germany, France, the UK, Switzerland and Austria.TAP will promote the economic development and job creation along the pipeline route; it will be a major source of foreign direct investment. With first gas sales to Georgia and Turkey targeted for late 2018, first deliveries to Europe will follow approximately in early 2020.TAP's shareholding is comprised of BP (20%), SOCAR (20%), Snam (20%), Fluxys (19%), Enagás (16%) and Axpo (5%).

Yanvar 16, 2017 2:45

Said according to Reuters…

Global oil prices will witness "much more volatility" in 2017 even though markets may rebalance in the first half of the year if output cuts pledged by producers are implemented, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) said according to Reuters.The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) agreed on Nov. 30 to cut output by 1.2 million bpd to 32.5 million bpd for the first six months of 2017, in addition to 558,000 bpd of cuts agreed by independent producers such as Russia, Oman and Mexico."I would expect that we will see a rebalancing of the markets within the first half of this year," said Fatih Birol, executive director of IEA, the Paris-based global energy watchdog."But what I want to say (is) that we are entering a period of much more volatility in the market ... the name of the game is volatility," he told.Prices fell on Friday and ended the week 3 percent lower on lingering doubts over the extent of OPEC cuts, with sentiment worsened by concerns over the economic health of the world's second-largest oil consumer, China, after it reported the steepest falls in overall exports since 2009.Birol said although the OPEC agreement could signal higher oil prices, it would also encourage more production from the United States and elsewhere. Higher prices could also weaken global demand for oil, he added.He added that a recent trend of declining Chinese oil production due to low prices could be reversed if the market strengthened.

Yanvar 16, 2017 2:05