Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Wednesday his country hopes that the TurkStream natural gas pipeline project and the Southern Gas Corridor will “operate in the conditions of fair competition,” RIA news agency reported.
“Of course, we are always ready to compete with other producers, other routes, which are currently being discussed as part of the so-called Southern Gas Corridor. What is important is that the competition is fair,” Lavrov said.
The first stage of the Southern Gas Corridor project, which aims to deliver 10 billion cubic meters of Azerbaijani gas to Europe through Georgia and Turkey, was put in operation in Baku in late May. The project was launched as part of the European Union’s efforts to increase the security and diversity of its energy suppliers.
On the other hand, the Russia-sponsored TurkStream pipeline project, which is being built since last year, will have a capacity of 15.75 billion cubic meters (556 billion cubic feet) per year. One line is expected to supply natural gas solely for consumption in Turkey. The second string will transport gas to European countries through Turkey and is scheduled for completion in 2019.
Gazprom is considering options to extend the pipeline through Bulgaria and Serbia or through Greece and Italy.
