Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum Under Reconstruction After Explosion

A section of the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum (South Caucasus ) gas pipeline was damaged in an explosion which passed through the Sarikamis district, a province of Kars in north-eastern Turkey, on August 4. The Turkish state pipeline company Botas started restoration of the damaged area the same day.

The exact cause of the incident is not yet known, but the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of Turkey, Taner Yildiz, claims it was a terrorist attack.

No-one was hurt during the explosion and the supply of gas through the pipeline has been stopped until reconstruction works are complete.

According to the Trend News Agency, there was almost no gas in the pipeline during the explosion due to maintenance work being carried out on the platform in the Shah Deniz gas field in Azerbaijan. The Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum gas pipeline, also called the South Caucasus pipeline, is required for Azerbaijani gas export from the Shah Deniz field. The pipeline originates at the terminal near Baku, goes through Georgia and ends in the Turkish city of Erzurum, where the gas distribution hub is located.

The exploded gas pipeline is operated by Turkish company Botas, and as such the issue of its security is Ankara’s responsibility. Its technical operator from Baku to the Georgian-Turkey border is British Petroleum Company, commercial operator – SOCAR (State Oil Company of Azerbaijan).

Eka Karsaulidze