The construction of the Ygdyr-Sadarak gas pipeline is underway

The construction of the Ygdir-Sadarak gas pipeline has commenced, and it is expected to become operational in 2024, according to Azerbaijan in Focus, reporting Turan, citing a reliable source.

The project is a collaboration between SOCAR (State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic) and Botas, with the aim of establishing an 85-kilometer gas pipeline boasting a capacity of 500 million cubic meters per year (equivalent to 1.5 million cubic meters per day) and featuring one gas compressor station.

The significance of the Ygdir-Nakhchivan gas pipeline project was underscored during discussions between Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister, Jeyhun Bayramov, and Turkey’s Foreign Minister, Hakan Fidan, on July 31 in Ankara. Bayramov emphasized the importance of completing the project by 2024.

This gas pipeline serves a crucial role in enhancing the energy security of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic (NAR) of Azerbaijan, which lacks a direct land connection with the rest of the country but shares borders with Turkey, Iran, and Armenia. Once operational, the gas pipeline will enable the delivery of Azerbaijani gas from Erzurum, a key node in the existing Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum and TANAP gas pipelines, to the NAR, marking the region’s reconnection to “blue fuel” after more than 30 years.

The idea of constructing the Ygdir-Sadarak (NAR) gas pipeline emerged in December 2020, following an agreement between the energy ministries of Azerbaijan and Turkey documented in a corresponding Memorandum. The pipeline is instrumental in addressing the gas supply challenge that arose after the high-pressure main gas pipeline Barda-Agdam-Khankendi-Lachin-Goriz-Nakhchivan was affected during the early 1990s due to the First Karabakh War.

To support the energy supply of the isolated NAR, Azerbaijan and Iran initiated gas swap operations in 2005, which allowed Azerbaijan to supply gas to Iran through the Astara hub, and Iran reciprocated by supplying gas to the NAR through Julfa. The construction of the Ygdir-Sadarak gas pipeline will entirely resolve the issue of gas supply to the NAR.

Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister expressed that energy cooperation between Azerbaijan and Turkey has been a prime example of successful collaboration. The Southern Gas Corridor, a transformative project in the Eurasian region’s energy landscape, has been instrumental in delivering additional volumes of gas to both the Turkish market and Europe. Discussions are currently underway to expand the TANAP and TAP gas pipelines to meet the European Commission’s and various European countries calls for increased gas supplies.

The Ygdir-Nakhchivan gas pipeline will have a capacity of 500 million cubic meters per year, enabling a daily supply of 1.5 million cubic meters of gas to the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan. The gas will be transmitted from Turkey to NAR through this pipeline, which spans approximately 85 kilometers in Turkish territory and includes the construction of one gas measuring station.

Turkey has been receiving gas from Azerbaijan through two pipelines since 2007, and the European Union began receiving gas through these pipelines in December 2020.