The construction of both lines of the TurkStream natural gas pipeline project is 48 percent completed, according to construction company South Stream Transport B.V. on Monday.
Gazprom's subsidiary, Amsterdam-based South Stream Transport B.V. said on Feb. 19 that installation of the first line of the TurkStream gas pipeline from the construction vessel, the Pioneering Spirit, passed the 660 kilometer point in the Black Sea near the border of Bulgaria's Exclusive Economic Zone.
According to the statement, the previously laid section of the pipeline's offshore route is located in the pipe-laying corridor approved earlier for the South Stream gas pipeline.
'At the moment, Pioneering Spirit continues pipe lay along the new section of the route developed for TurkStream towards the Kiyikoy settlement in accordance with the permits obtained from Turkey,' it said and noted that in total, 884 kilometers of both lines have been installed, representing about 48 percent of the offshore section of the pipeline.
The calculations showed that more than 70 percent of the Turkish part, also referred as the first line, of the project is completed already.
The Pioneering Spirit, the world's largest construction vessel owned by Allseas, continues to work on the construction of the two offshore pipelines.
The first line of the TurkStream natural gas project will reach the Turkish shore in May of this year and will start pumping gas at the end of 2019.
The TurkStream project consists of two lines, the first of which will serve Turkey with a capacity of 15.75 billion cubic meters, while the second line is planned to serve Europe.
South Stream Transport B.V. is responsible for the construction of the gas pipeline's offshore section.
By Murat Temizer
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr