Page 13 - FSUOGM Week 29

FSUOGM PIPELINES & TRANSPORT FSUOGM

Net4Gas scales back gas link plans

CZECH REPUBLIC CZECH gas grid operator Net4Gas has scaled receive regulatory support. The EU had earlier
back plans for new gas links with Austria and funded studies on both pipelines.
Net4Gas was unable to Poland, after failing to get EU financial support. “The current 10-year plan does not expect
get the projects on the The company’s Stork II pipeline was due to the BACI and STORK II projects in their ear-
EU's list of projects of become operational in 2023, pumping up to lier planned form, mainly because they are not
common interest. 13.7mn cubic metres per day (5bn cubic metres at the moment included in the European list of
per year) of gas in the direction of the Czech projects of common interest,” Net4Gas said in a
Republic and 19.6 mcm per day in the direction statement to Reuters.
of Poland. Net4Gas was also looking to build an Net4Gas operates over 3,800 km of pipelines
18 mcm per day bidirectional pipeline connect- in the Czech Republic and shares cross-border
ing the Czech Republic with Austria, known as infrastructure with Germany, Poland and Slova-
BACI, by 2024. kia. It handles predominantly Russian gas, arriv-
However, Net4Gas has excluded both pro- ing in Europe via the Nord Stream pipeline that
jects in its 2021-2030 development programme runs under the Baltic Sea to northern Germany.
published this month. It may build smaller-sized The company has recently been investing in
interconnections instead, depending on the extra infrastructure to boost flows from Ger-
results of capacity auctions scheduled for 2021. many, in preparation of the launch of the Nord
The operator has also pushed back the launch Stream 2 pipeline. Like the first Nord Stream,
of these potential pipelines, to 2027-28 for the Nord Stream 2 will also pump up to 55 bcm per
Polish link and 2026 for the connection with year of Russian gas. It is due on stream in early
Austria. 2021, a year behind schedule because of permit-
Net4Gas was unable to get either STORK II ting delays in Denmark and US sanctions.
or BACI on the EU’s projects of common interest Net4Gas is a 50:50 joint venture between Alli-
(PCIs) list, which can gain access to grants from anz Infrastructure Czech HoldCo II and Cana-
the bloc’s Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) and da’s OMERS pension plan. ™

Azerbaijan warns that oil, gas

infrastructure at risk

AZERBAIJAN ELSHAD Nassirov, vice president of Azeri state through Georgia, Turkey, Greece and Albania
energy company Socar, noted during a confer- and across the Adriatic Sea seabed.
Fifteen servicemen from ence call reported by Reuters that some of the “The pipeline will be ready and operational in
Azerbaijan and Armenia energy infrastructure involved in shipping Cas- time in October-November this year,” he report-
have been killed in pian oil and gas to world markets is located in the edly said.
border clashes. vicinity of the current military operations. Armenia on July 18 also warned about secu-
Fifteen servicemen from Azerbaijan and rity risks to the region after Azerbaijan said two
Armenia and one Azeri civilian died last week in days previously it might strike the Metsamor
clashes between the two countries. nuclear power plant.
Nassirov told the call that if they looked at “This is a statement that should be unequiv-
a map they would see that clashes had taken ocally considered a crime against humanity ...
place near some of its infrastructure. He said it should be given an appropriate international
the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline, the Baku- response and probe,” Armenian Prime Minister
Supsa oil pipeline, the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzrum gas Nikol Pashinyan said.
pipeline and some other facilities were located Nassirov spoke on a conference call organ-
not far from the territory where clashes had ised by US-based think-tank the Caspian Policy
taken place. Center. He called on the West to help protect
Nassirov also mentioned the Trans-Adriatic Azerbaijan’s energy exports.
Pipeline (TAP), the last stretch of the South- “I would use this opportunity to invite our
ern Gas Corridor (SCG) set of interconnected colleagues in Washington and elsewhere to think
pipeline. The corridor, when operational, is set about how fragile ... this region is and to think
to reduce Europe’s dependence on Russian gas how to provide ... military and physical security
supplies with the provision of Azerbaijani gas to the corridor, which is providing energy secu-
from the Caspian Sea to Italy via a route running rity to Europe,” Nassirov said. ™

Week 29 22•July•2020 www. NEWSBASE .com P13