November 13 (SeeNews) - Turkey's prime minister Recep Erdogan said the groundbreaking ceremony for the Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP), which will carry Azeri natural gas to Europe via Turkey, will take place in the beginning of 2014, local media reported on Wednesday.
Erdogan did not quote a specific date at a press conference after a meeting with Azerbaijan's president Ilham Aliyev in Ankara, daily Hurriyet said.
TANAP's planned capacity is 16 billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas per year at initial stage and would be increased later up to 23 bcm by 2023 and 31 bcm by 2026.
The project is owned by TANAP Dogalgaz Iletim A.S., which is controlled by Azeri state-owned oil and gas company SOCAR and 20%-owned by Turkish state-owned firms BOTAS and TPAO.