MEDIA RELEASE

Marine Survey in the Adriatic Sea to Verify Offshore Route for the Trans Adriatic Pipeline

January 22, 2009

BAAR, SWITZERLAND. The Trans Adriatic Pipeline project will start a seabed survey in the Adriatic Sea on the 26th of January to verify the route for the underwater section of the new gas pipeline.

The Trans Adriatic Pipeline intends to transport natural gas from the Caspian Sea and Middle East regions via Greece and Albania, across the Adriatic Sea to Italy’s southern Puglia region and further to Western Europe. The offshore pipeline has a diameter of 1.05 meter and a length of approximately 115 kilometres.

Surveying the potential route is an important preparatory step before beginning the detailed engineering of the pipeline. “We have prepared almost all maps for the onshore section of the pipeline. Now, with the results of the marine survey, we will be able to decide precisely on the best route underwater. It means that the whole corridor for the pipeline will be identified,” said Christian Falck, Technical Director of the TAP project.

Previous reconnaissance marine survey for TAP project was carried out in the Adriatic Sea in October 2006. It provided preliminary information about the potential underwater corridor for the pipeline. The current marine survey will help to create a more precise map of the terrain in the Adriatic Sea, identify obstacles, potential risks and choose the safest areas for the installation of the subsea part
of the pipeline.

The survey will be carried out by DeepOcean, a Norwegian company providing subsea services, which has experience working on similar projects in the North Sea. The exploration will be performed using the “Edda Freya”, a Norwegian vessel specialised in conducting this type of advanced surveys. The campaign will mobilise from Brindisi Harbour in Italy on the 26th of January and is expected to be completed in approximately two weeks, depending on the weather conditions.

The deepest section of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline is more than 810 meters below the surface. Researching seabed at such depth is a challenging task which requires involvement of specialised engineers from DeepOcean and use of the state-of-the-art marine survey equipment and sophisticated exploration methods.

After completing the marine survey, the TAP project will continue to work on engineering and planning, as well as securing a favourable regulatory framework for the pipeline project. “2009 will be a very active year for the TAP project. We are rapidly expanding - our team in Switzerland is now 40 persons and still growing. In a couple of months we are also opening country offices in Albania and Italy,” said Robert Klein, TAP Project Director.

About Trans Adriatic Pipeline project
Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP AG) is a Swiss registered joint venture company equally owned by Norway’s StatoilHydro and Swiss-based EGL Group. TAP AG will develop, build and own the Trans Adriatic Pipeline which will carry natural gas from the Caspian Sea and Middle East regions into Europe. The intended 520-kilometre-long gas pipeline will tie into the existing Greek national gas system near Thessaloniki and stretch approximately 200 kilometres to the Greek/Albanian border. From there, TAP will cross Albania and the Adriatic Sea to enter Italy near Brindisi.

The TAP project is in its development phase supported by the European Union (EU) as a “Priority Project” under its Trans-European Energy Networks (TEN-E) guidelines, as it contributes to the EU’s objectives and policies aimed at diversification and security of gas supply.

About EGL
EGL is a European energy trading company with its own assets. It trades in power, natural gas and energy-related financial products and its activities focus predominantly on wholesale and bulk customers. EGL is accredited to trade on all the important energy exchanges. Besides its head office in Dietikon (near Zurich in Switzerland), EGL also has subsidiaries in Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Kosovo, Norway, Poland, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden and Turkey. EGL’s registered office is Laufenburg. The company is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (ticker: EGL).

About StatoilHydro
StatoilHydro is a major international, integrated energy company, with its headquarter in Norway. The company is the leading operator of oil and gas activities on the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS). StatoilHydro has operations in 40 countries and 31,000 employees, building positions internationally. It is a major seller of crude oil and the second largest supplier of gas to Europe. As technical service provider for the major pipeline systems for gas from the NCS and for two large gas processing plants, StatoilHydro has extensive experience from transportation, processing and marketing of piped gas. StatoilHydro also markets liquefied natural gas (LNG). StatoilHydro is listed on Oslo Børs (ticker: STL) and the New York Stock Exchange (ticker: STO).

For more information, please contact:

Aida Aidakieva
Communications Associate
Trans Adriatic Pipeline AG
Office: +4141 747 3467
Mobile: +41 79 377 2443
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Photographs illustrating this media release are available for download at
http://www.trans-adriatic-pipeline.com/news/images_.html

For additional information, please visit these web sites:
http://www.egl.ch
http://www.statoilhydro.com
http://www.deepocean.no

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 [English] Marine Survey in the Adriatic Sea to Verify Offshore Route for the Trans Adriatic Pipeline 39.08 Kb
 [Albanian] Studim Detar në Detin Adriatik për të verifikuar Gjurmën Detare të Gazsjellësit Trans Adriatic 43.08 Kb
 [Italiano] Campagna di indagini sottomarine indetta da Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) atta a verificare la rotta del gasdotto nel Mar Adriatico 40.55 Kb