energy
Axpo divests stake in the TAP natural gas pipeline
The energy group Axpo sells its 5 percent stake in the natural gas pipeline Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP). In a statement on Friday, Axpo estimated the value of the transaction at CHF 210 million.
Published: 39 minutes ago
The energy group Axpo is selling its 5 percent stake in the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) natural gas pipeline for CHF 210 million. Pictured is a worker constructing the pipeline in Albania in September 2016. (Archive image)
Completion is planned for the second half of 2023. Axpo sells one percent of the TAP stake to the Belgian company Fluxys and the remaining four percent to the Spanish company Enagás.
The two companies are now each in possession of a fifth of the pipeline, it is said. The rest is divided between the energy company BP, Socar from Azerbaijan and the Italian Snam, each with 20 percent each.
“Although the company has decided to divest its stake in the project, TAP will remain a strategic partner for us as Axpo Solutions will continue to market the long-term gas supplies secured by the Shah Deniz consortium,” said Axpo CFO Joris Gröflin quoted in the communication. Securing and diversifying the gas supply in Switzerland and Europe is a clear priority.
According to Gröflin, transporting grass via the TAP pipeline is also an urgently needed source of energy for Swiss consumers, both households and companies. Gas trading also remains an important international business for Axpo. This is an area where hydrogen and other low-carbon gases are gaining importance, also with a view to achieving a carbon-neutral future.
TAP operates the infrastructure for transporting natural gas from the Greek-Turkish border through Greece, Albania and the Adriatic Sea to southern Italy. The pipeline is 878 km long and is part of the 3,500 km Southern Gas Corridor that transports natural gas from the Shah Deniz II gas field in Azerbaijan to Europe. The TAP has a capacity of around 10 billion cubic meters per year, as Axpo writes.
Axpo initiated the geostrategic project. Gas has been transported from the Caspian Sea via the pipeline since the end of 2020.