Route

The Trans Adriatic Pipeline  will start near Thessaloniki, in Greece and continues onshore all the way to the Adriatic Sea coast, after crossing the entire territory of Albania from east to west. The offshore part of the pipeline starts near the Albanian city of Fier and crosses the Adriatic Sea to tie into Italy’s gas transportation grid operated by SNAM ReteGas. In its upstream part, TAP will interconnect with the existing DESFA pipeline system in Greece, which is linked further to the east with systems in Turkey, to secure access to contracted gas supplies in the Caspian Sea and Middle East gas-rich regions.    TAP is the shortest gas transit route of all the pipeline projects planned in the so-called Southern Gas Corridor, linking Europe to new gas supplies. The offshore section of the pipeline is routed through the shallowest part of the Adriatic Sea in comparison to other projects, which will ensure the long term physical stability of the pipeline and contribute to lower gas transport costs. Route assesment surveys In 2009 TAP has started conducting surveys to identify potential obstacles on the route. In January 2009 TAP has conducted the offshore survey in the Adriatic Sea. In 2009 TAP team completed route assesment survey in Albania and in Italy.  As a result of these studies, optimal routing has been identified, which avoids densely populated and sensitive areas, such as National Hotova park in Albania and Natura 2000 habitat in Italy. Next steps will include further fine tuning of the route and preparation of the detailed environmental and social impact assessments in accordance with EU legislation and international best practice. The route assessment survey in Greece is planned to start later in 2010.