Greece, Albania and Italy signed an intergovernmental agreement on Wednesday to build the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) to deliver Azerbaijani gas to Europe.
“A new energy corridor will appear on Europe’s energy map, which has serious competitive advantages in comparison with other variants being considered,” Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras said.
The trilateral agreement was signed by Greek Foreign Minister Dimitris Avramopoulos, Albanian Deputy Prime Minister and Energy Minister Edmond Haxhinasto and Italian Development Minister Corrado Passera. The ceremony was attended by a number of high ranking officials of third countries, including US Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs Eric Rubin.
A Greek parliamentary opposition party, left-wing Syriza, criticized the deal for being carried out to the detriment of Greece’s existing energy ties with Russia.
TAP will transport gas from the Caspian region via Greece and Albania and across the Adriatic Sea to southern Italy and further into Western Europe. The project is aimed at enhancing security of supply as well as diversification of gas supplies for the European markets.
