Po understand the strategic nature of the TAP, the trans-Adriatic gas pipeline that transports gas from the rich deposits of the Caspian Sea to Europe, we need to start from here. «Since the beginning of commercial operations, on 31 December 2020, to today, we have transported 18.5 billion cubic meters of gas, of which almost 16 billion in Italy alone – explains the managing director of Tap, Luca Schieppati, in this interview with Sole 24 Ore -. And, in 2022 alone, we expect to bring almost 10 billion to our country: 3 billion more than the 7 billion in 2021″.
Schieppati, manager of long experience with 30 years of navigation in the sector, chooses to let the numbers do the talking to explain how the Tap, with 25-28 million cubic meters of gas per day reaching the Melendugno reception terminal in Puglia in recent months, has become, after Algeria , the second main supplier of Italy looking for new routes to free itself from Russian gas.
How do you get to this result?
We have worked hard in recent months, completing long-term transport contracts which guarantee 10 billion cubic meters a year for 25 years, of which 8 billion destined for Italy, one for Greece and another for Bulgaria. At the same time, we also maximized short-term capacity which, in this critical phase for Italian and European supplies, has contributed to increasing the security of supplies. In doing so we exceeded the commitments we had made.
What were the agreements between the Azeris and the Italian government?