ATHENS – An increase in the capacity of the TAP natural gas pipeline is being planned to help reduce dependence on Russian gas in Southeastern Europe, the company managing the pipeline told the Athens-Macedonian News Agency, according to an article released on Sunday.

The company said the initial target was to increase gas deliveries to 12 billion cubic metres a year from 2022, up from roughly 8.0 billion in 2021, and to possibly to double its capacity to 20 billion cubic metres a year, with the final decision to depend on a market test to be conducted in 2023.

An increase in natural gas imports from Azerbaijan was decided during a recent visit by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to Baku.

The operation of the TAP pipeline and especially its expansion will establish Greece as an energy hub for SE Europe and the EU as a whole, as the pipeline carries gas from Azerbaijan to Italy from the Greek-Turkish border, via Albania and an undersea pipeline.

The commercial operation of the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria will also be capable of supplying Bulgaria and other countries with which there are connections (North Macedonia, Romania etc).