Five months after construction work began for the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) in Albania, on March 7th eleven Ambassadors and diplomats resident in Albania visited the TAP project works currently underway in Ura Vajgurore, in Berat region. They received a progress overview and an outline of TAP activities to be carried out throughout 2017 by TAP representatives.
Ulrike Andres, Commercial and External Affairs Director of TAP, said: “TAP is a highly strategic project for the European gas market. Once natural gas from the Shah Deniz II field starts flowing through TAP in 2020, several markets will benefit from increased gas supply security and diversification.
"We are thankful to the Albanian authorities for their strong collaboration, which enabled TAP’s good progress. So far in Albania we have cleared and graded more than 72 km, strung over 62 km of line pipes, welded another 52 km and backfilled approximately 40 km”, she added.
The Ambassadors were pleased to learn more about TAP’s ongoing work in and benefits to Albania. They commended the corporation for its sensitive social responsibility shown through community infrastructure development and work with local authorities.
In particular, Swiss Ambassador Christoph Graf commented on the first class quality standards introduced by TAP which also includes higher quality work from Albanian subcontractors. He mentioned the importance Switzerland places on this strategic investment that connects Albania with European gas networks and “cements Albania’s position in the European context”.
The Trans Adriatic Pipeline is partly owned by Swiss company AXPO and its headquarters are in Baar, Switzerland. In addition, the Swiss government has granted 6 million Swiss francs to strengthen the capacities of the Albanian state to develop and manage the gas sector. The project is funded by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs – SECO – and one of its first tasks was to assist the Albanian government to renegotiate its contract with TAP thereby gaining around 80 million Euros in added benefits.
TAP to date employs over 1’700 employees - approximately 84% Albanians – in construction processes. Additionally, several roads and bridges have been upgraded, connecting remote villages with urban areas. Also, a number of social and environmental investment projects are under way: refurbishment of several schools along the TAP route, projects that promote tourism, etc. Last but not least, numerous local companies have been subcontracted to offer their services and expertise for the construction of the onshore pipeline segment in Albania.
In total, the Ambassadors and diplomatic representatives of eight countries took part in the visit:
Ambassador of Republic of Turkey, Hidayet Bayraktar
Ambassador of Republic of Italy, Alberto Cutillo
Ambassador of Switzerland, Christoph Graf
Ambassador of United States of America, Donald Lu
Ambassador of the United Kingdom, Duncan Norman
Deputy Head of Mission of Federal Republic of Germany, Anke Holstein
Deputy Head of Mission of Republic of France, Isabelle Le Guellec
- Deputy Head of Mission of United Kingdom, Sean Melbourne
- Minister Counsellor of Hellenic Republic, Kostantinos Piperigos
