(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 19. Over the past five years, the number of companies registered to ship gas through the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) has grown from just three to forty-six, Murad Heydarov, Chairman of TAP's Board of Directors, said in an exclusive interview with Trend, as TAP marked 5 years since the start of commercial operation on November 15.

“These companies represent a diverse mix of major European and regional energy players, trading houses, and utilities. Many of these new participants are active in Greece and Bulgaria - markets that TAP has helped interconnect - further supporting new eastward flows from Italy and Western Europe into South-Eastern Europe. Customer satisfaction remains high, with TAP's latest survey showing a clear improvement in feedback from both long-standing and newly registered shippers.”

On November 15, 2020, four and a half years after the inauguration of construction works, the 878-km gas transportation system crossing Greece, Albania, the Adriatic Sea and Italy, began commercial operations. On December 31, 2020 TAP started transporting first gas. TAP's annual capacity is 10 billion cubic meters with the possibility of expansion to 20 billion cubic meters.

The increase of TAP supplies by an additional 1.2 billion cubic meters by 2026 was approved in January 2024.

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