“The connection of Romania, Bulgaria and probably Hungary to TAP would be an initiative which might be beneficial for Romanian consumers, as prices would be more competitive. It is an idea which might become an achievable project. It is a concept which is also discussed with the European Commission’s representatives,” Nicolescu told MEDIAFAX.
The TAP pipeline will cross Greece and Albania before reaching southern Italy, and is to be built by a consortium led by British Petroleum, Norway’s Statoil and Azerbaijan’s SOCAR. The project company also includes Total (France), E.ON (Germany) Swiss trader Axpo.
Romania also relies on the new hydrocarbon discoveries in the Black Sea, as it is looking for alternative ways to reduce its dependence on Russian gas after missing an opportunity with the Nabucco West pipeline project, which lost the bid to transport Azeri gas to the European Union, in favor of TAP.