Deputy Vice-President of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) Vitaly Baylarbayov said in an interview that the implementation of Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) project is at risk due to delays in issuing permits by local authorities in Italian Puglia region.
According to Baylarbayov, all activities on the construction of the Southern Gas Corridor (which includes TAP project) are progressing in accordance with the schedule or even faster, and more than 70 % of the works in Azerbaijan and Georgia has been completed, while first gas deliveries from Shah Deniz 2 field are expected in 2018. However, the issuance of construction permits for TAP in Italy is delayed. The Government has approved the project in general in 2015, but additional 65 authorizations by different instances in Italy are also required and their issuance is progressing slowly. Baylarbayov said that skepticism about large projects is present in some regions, especially Puglia region, where an olive grove consisting of more than 2,000 old olive trees has to be displaced for two years under supervision and then returned to the original place after the construction of the pipeline is completed.
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Tags: construction, gas, gas pipeline, Italy, permit, Region, TAP