Second String of TurkStream Pipeline gets Go Ahead

Gazprom has received approval from Turkey for the second string of the TurkStream gas pipeline’s offshore section stretching to the Turkish coast.

TurkStream is a new export gas pipeline stretching from Russia to Turkey across the Black Sea. The project is already well underway, with three sections being built simultaneously: onshore in Russia and Turkey and offshore in the Black Sea. Over 760 kilometers of the two offshore strings have already been built, and construction of the landfall in Russia is expected to be complete this year. 

South Stream Transport officially started construction of the receiving terminal in Turkey earlier this month. The pipeline will come ashore on the Turkish coast some 100 kilometers west of Istanbul, near the village of Kiyikoy. From Kiyikoy, an underground pipeline will be built to connect TurkStream to the existing network at Luleburgaz. The route will continue from there to its end point at the Greek border. 

The first string of the pipeline is intended for Turkish consumers, while the second string will deliver gas to southern and southeastern Europe. The Allseas vessel Pioneering Spirit is working on the two offshore pipelines. TurkStream’s offshore section will run over 900 kilometers (560 miles), with an onshore string for gas transit to be laid up to Turkey’s border with neighboring countries. TurkStream will be the first 32-inch sized system to be laid at depths of over two kilometers (6,500 feet).

Turkey is one of the largest consumers of Russian gas. At present, Russia supplies gas to Turkey via the Blue Stream and Trans-Balkan gas pipelines.