By Orhan Coskun
ANKARA, April 29 (Reuters) - Turkey could more than tripleits purchases of Azeri natural gas once the planned $10 billionTANAP pipeline reaches full capacity in 2026, the generalmanager of the project told Reuters on Wednesday.
Plans call for the Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline(TANAP) to initially carry 16 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gasa year by mid-2018.
Some 6 bcm of that will be for Turkey, with the resttransiting to Europe.
"Once the flow in the pipeline reaches 31 bcm, Turkey willbe able to buy 21 bcm of this if it wants to. Both BOTAS orTurkish private companies can buy this," Saltuk Duzyol said inan interview.
The 1,850 km pipeline stretching from Turkey's border withGeorgia to Greece is important to Turkey and to Europe's effortsto lessen its dependence on Russian gas.
The gas will come from Azerbaijan's vast Shah Deniz II fieldin the Caspian Sea which is being developed by a BP-led consortium.
TANAP will deliver 10 bcm to Europe once it is connected tothe Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) by 2020. By 2023, TANAP'scapacity will rise to 23 bcm per year and then to 31 bcm by2026, according to project executives.
RUSSIAN COMPETITION
Price competition could emerge from Russia's proposed newundersea pipeline, dubbed "Turkish Stream", Duzyol said.
Facing objections from the EU, Russia abandoned its $40billion South Stream project which would have crossed the BlackSea to Bulgaria, bypassing Ukraine.
Moscow is now proposing Turkish Stream as an alternativealthough Ankara's response to the project, which envisagespiping gas to a hub on the Turkish-Greek border, has beenlukewarm.
"In mid- to long term, it is possible that we will see pricecompetition once the pipelines in both projects reach theThrace," Duzyol said, referring to the western outlet of Turkeyto Europe.
"This competition would be good for customers both in Turkeyand in Greece," he said.
Energy officials have said TANAP remains their priority.
(Writing by Humeyra Pamuk; editing by Jason Neely)
BP (BP.)