The Ukraine may open the second front against Gazprom
Last week, Turkey announced its intention to sell its stake in project of construction of the Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) – the main gas pipeline, providing for transportation of gas from the Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz field to Turkey's border with Europe. This is the second package of the gas pipeline’s shares, put up for sale. The plans to sell a part of its stake were earlier reported by SOCAR. "If we get a good offer, you are ready to discuss this issue," - said head of SOCAR Ravnag Abulaev.
Ankara and Baku haven’t yet reported, what proportion of the TANAP’s shares and when can be put up for sale. All the matter is in the issue price. SOCAR owns 58% in the TANAP consortium, established in 2012, Turkish company Botas - 30%, and the British oil giant BP has an option of 12%. The total cost of the project is estimated at $10-11 billion.
Experts call Iran, which has repeatedly stated its interest in the supply of gas to the European market, a potential buyer of the stake in the pipeline. It will be able to do the deal after the cancellation of international sanctions. Its competitors could be Eastern European partners of Azerbaijan - oil and gas companies of Romania, Greece and the Ukraine. In this case, the maximum resources in the new pipeline would be taken by Azerbaijani gas, and Iran will get only a small quota.