BAKU, Azerbaijan, December 12. The State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) is anticipated to make a significant decision about the gas supply of the Albanian city of Korce in late December 2023, a source in the country's fuel and energy complex told Trend.
According to the source, the plan is to present a comprehensive feasibility study for this project by the end of this month and to make the final investment decision (FID) on SOCAR's financing of the project, marking Azerbaijan's first direct investment in the construction of a gas distribution line in Albania.
The Albanian government offered six projects for the acquisition and distribution of gas in 2022, with a total cost of four billion euros, and SOCAR participates in the two projects that are closest to completion.
"SOCAR is actively involved in the gas supply to Korce, Albania's significant technical, tourist, and agricultural hub, at the request of the Albanian side. Once the FID is approved, the project will proceed quickly and efficiently. According to the Albanian government's vision, the second city in the gas supply process will be Fieri, 15 kilometers from the Adriatic Sea, and the project will also involve SOCAR," the source noted.
Both cities are near the infrastructure of the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), which has been operational since 2020 and is the European leg of the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) (the corridor originates in Baku).
The gas in Korce is intended to be utilized for both heating and electricity generation (instead of coal) as part of REPower EU, a goal to rapidly reduce reliance on Russian fossil fuels and accelerate the green transition.
SOCAR may also be involved in the construction of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Vlora, from which a connecting branch to TAP (connection in the Albanian city of Fieri) is proposed, as well as gas supply from the LNG terminal to a new gas compressor station in Vlora.
The Albanian side also intends to connect Vlora and Fieri with a gas line, which might cost around 40 million euros.
The Excelerate Energy firm (interested in transporting liquefied natural gas to the port of Vlora), Italian Snam, Spanish Enagas (TAP participant), and Albanian Albgaz are all involved in the Vlora-LNG project and the Vlora-Fieri bundle.
Albania remains simply a transit country on the SGC line, which has been operational since December 2020.
However, Albanian officials announced a willingness to purchase approximately 700 million cubic meters of gas each year with the expansion of the SGC, with 200 million cubic meters purchased in the next two years.