BAKU, Azerbaijan, Feb.12
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
The Southern Gas Corridor has already caused gas price decreases in Italy, the EU Commissioner for energy Kadri Simson said at the 7th meeting of the Southern Gas Corridor Advisory Council, Trend reports.
“The Southern Gas Corridor helps the EU to diversify its energy supply and offers our citizens more choice and more competition. In fact, in Italy we are already seeing decreases in gas prices at the beginning of the year. Our success also means the beginning of a new partnership. With the Corridor, the EU and Azerbaijan are now strategic energy partners,” she said.
Simson noted that a question being raised is how this project can also contribute to ensure secure and affordable energy access for the Western Balkans region, as they phase out of coal while progressing towards a decarbonised system and using their strong potential for developing renewables.
“The EU is standing with an outstretched hand to help the Western Balkans in the energy transition, in a pragmatic way and in a spirit of real partnership. We put energy and connectivity at the centre of the Economic and Investment plan for the Western Balkans adopted last year. Of course, whether Azerbaijani gas will reach the Western Balkans one day, will depend on a number of aspects. The main driver will be market-based investment decisions. This summer the TAP consortium is planning to conduct a first binding market test. Infrastructure has to come into consideration as well. Each new infrastructure project will have be assessed on a case-by-case basis. The impact on sustainability will be examined. All of this requires important technical work,” added the commissioner.
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