BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 26. With the bidirectionalization of the first pipeline branch of the Trans-Balkan Pipeline, which used to transport natural gas from the direction of Ukraine through Romania and Bulgaria to Turkiye, it became available for natural gas to flow from the direction of Greece and Turkiye and enter the Bulgarian network via a border crossing, Tamás Torma, Ambassador of Hungary in Baku, said in an exclusive interview with Trend.
„This infrastructural development means a possibility for natural gas originated from Azerbaijan to reach our region. The prominent role of this route in diversifying the natural gas sources of the EU Member States was also highlighted by the May 2022 REPowerEU plan of the European Union,” the ambassador explained.
Azerbaijan exports gas to Europe via the Trans Adriatic Pipeline, the final leg of the Southern Gas Corridor. The initial capacity of TAP is 10 billion cubic meters expandable to 20 billion cubic meters per year. TAP has delivered a total of 22 billion cubic meters since the start of commercial operation.
The latest data reveals that Azerbaijan exported 2.9 billion cubic meters of gas to Europe in the first quarter of 2023. Overall, gas exports grew by 11.2 percent year on year.
From January through March 2023, Azerbaijan exported natural gas to Europe (2.9 billion cubic meters), Türkiye (2.7 billion cubic meters), and Georgia (0.9 billion cubic meters). During the reporting period, 1,4 billion cubic meters of gas were exported to Türkiye via the TANAP [Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline].
In the first quarter of 2023, gas production in Azerbaijan increased by three percent, to 12.2 billion cubic meters. The country exported over half, or 6.5 billion cubic meters, of natural gas to foreign markets.