World Bank approves $800 million loan for TANAP

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The World Bank's board of directors approved loans of $400 million each for Turkey and Azerbaijan late on Dec. 20 for the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) project. 

The project will transport natural gas from a gas field in Azerbaijan to Europe via Turkey with the aim of diversifying Azerbaijan's gas export markets and improving the security of the energy supply in Turkey and Southeastern Europe.

The loans will be supplied through the World Bank's subsidiary, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), Anadolu Agency said. 

Turkey's Petroleum Pipeline Corporation (BOTAS) will receive a loan guaranteed by Turkey with a maturity of 24 years.        

In Azerbaijan, the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) closed Joint Stock Company will obtain the loan with a guarantee from Azerbaijan based on a 30-year maturity period.        

The project is part of the Southern Gas Corridor Program, which, in addition to TANAP, includes the development of the Shah Deniz 2 gas field in Azerbaijan; an expansion of the South Caucasus Pipeline across Azerbaijan and Georgia to Turkey; and the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), which carries the gas through Greece and Albania and under the Adriatic Sea to Southern Italy. 

A number of international financial institutions are supporting the program, including the European Investment Bank (EIB), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the World Bank Group (WBG).

"We are very pleased to be part of a coalition of partners supporting TANAP, a component of the transformational Southern Gas Corridor, which will bring natural gas from the Caspian Sea to Europe,"...

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