Page 8 - FSUOGM Week 28 2021

FSUOGM PIPELINES & TRANSPORT FSUOGM

Albania eyes Caspian gas

ALBANIA THE consortium operating the Trans-Adriatic hydroelectric capacity. The country has vast
MIDDLE EAST
Pipeline (TAP) has agreed terms with Albania’s untapped solar energy potential, however.
Albania's government energy ministry on the development of a gas While Albania lacks any active gas-fired
has agreed with TAP entry point at Fier, which in the future will enable power generation, it does have a 100-MW ther-
on building a gas entry the Balkan country to access Caspian gas. mal power plant (TPP) in the southern port of
point. Representing the third and final section of the Vlora that is capable of running on gas in addi-
Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) network of pipe- tion to oil. The station was commission in 2009
lines, TAP began flowing gas from Azerbaijan’s but remains offline because of a cooling system
Shah Deniz field across Albanian territory to the failure.
Italian market in January. Albania might one Albania’s government also signed a mem-
day be able to use this gas for its own purposes, orandum of understanding (MoU) in March
but the country currently lacks a gas grid, or any with ExxonMobil and US floating LNG (FLNG)
active gas-powered generation. operator Excelerate Energy on developing an
TAP said the entry point would “significantly LNG import terminal in Vlora. There has been
strengthen the geo-strategic and commercial no update on the project since.
role of Albania in the region,” without disclosing In related news, Shah Deniz operator BP
when the facility was expected to be completed, announced this week that production had
how much it would cost to build or its capacity. It started at a new East South deepwater flank
will be situated next to a TAP compressor station at the field. The project is anticipated to yield
and will be capable of bi-directional flow. It will 400mn cubic feet (11.33mn cubic metres) per
include pressure reduction and fiscal metering day or 4.13bn cubic metres per year at full
facilities. capacity, which it should reach in the third
Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama hailed quarter. This will ensure that overall output
the agreement with TAP, noting that one day from Shah Deniz's second phase of develop-
the country could transform “practically into ment is "well over" 2.4 bcf per day, or 24.8 bcm
a net exporter of energy,” by “introducing gas per year, BP said.
as another component into the economic and The UK major noted that the extra supply
social life of the country.” would ensure that the Shah Deniz consortium
Albania is known more for its oil production, can fulfil its existing supply contracts for gas
while its power mix almost entirely comprises from Shah Deniz Stage 2. ™

P8 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 28 14•July•2021