Iran considers buying equity stake in TANAP pipeline

Iran’s Ambassador to Azerbaijan Mohsen Pak Ayin

Iran is considering buying a stake in the TANAP Trans  Anatolian Pipeline which is being built to carry gas from Azerbaijan’s giant offshore Shah Deniz field to Europe via Turkey, it emerged earlier this week. “We’re looking into the possibility of buying equity in TANAP if we reach our production targets by 2018,” Iran’ s Ambassador to Azerbaijan Mohsen Pak Ayin  told reporters on Tuesday.  
 Azerbaijan’s state energy firm SOCAR currently holds a 58%  stake in the project; Turkey’s Botas raised its stake from 20% to 30% last year; and BP is in the process of acquiring the remaining 12% from SOCAR. The pipeline will run from Turkey’s eastern border with Georgia to its western ones  with Bulgaria and Greece, and is due to be completed by  2018.