Berlin, August 22 - Neftegaz.RU. The German government said on August 21 it wanted a new alternative pipelines network constructed to transport Caspian natural gas supplies via Turkey to Europe.
«We have a significant interest in further developing the South corridor» (as opposed to the Norther corridor for gas deliveries between Russia and Europe, note), a government spokesperson told press ahead of an upcoming visit of German Chancellor Angela Merkel to Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia.
For several years, the EU has mulled the possibility of connecting European gas networks to the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan (TAP) and Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) routes which are currently being constructed.
«This is part of the diversification strategy of the EU to access gas from regions other than Europe,» the spokesperson explained.
Although the exact route of any eventual Transcaucasian pipeline is still unclear, an outstanding agreement must 1st be secured between 5 states located around the Caspian Sea in order to develop the necessary infrastructure for a southern corridor between Europe and the resource-rich region.
Additionally, the volumes of natural gas which can be transported along the TAP and TANAP pipelines remain substantially below that of the existing Nord Stream pipeline which already provides a direct link between Russia and Germany via the Baltic sea.
