On November 19, the Pioneering Spirit pipelaying vessel completed the construction of the offshore section of the TurkStream gas pipeline in the Black Sea, Gazprom says in a press release.
The command to weld the final joint of the gas pipeline’s second string was given by Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation, and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of the Republic of Turkey.
“Construction of TurkStream – a new gas pipeline connecting Russia and Turkey via the Black Sea – is entering its final stage. The work is well ahead of schedule: the offshore section of the gas pipeline was completed as early as today instead of in December as planned earlier. The swift pace of this project can be attributed to the concerted and coordinated efforts of the project team. In late 2019, the gas pipeline will be brought into operation. It will become an additional guarantee of energy security in Turkey and the countries of southern and southeastern Europe,” said Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee.
TurkStream is the project for a gas pipeline stretching across the Black Sea from Russia to Turkey and further to Turkey's border with neighboring countries. The first string of TurkStream is intended for Turkish consumers, while the second string will deliver gas to southern and southeastern Europe. Each string will have the throughput capacity of 15.75 billion cubic meters of gas per year. South Stream Transport B.V. is responsible for the construction of the gas pipeline's offshore section.
The construction contractor for both strings of the TurkStream gas pipeline’s offshore section is Allseas Group. The Group is a global leader in offshore pipelaying and subsea construction. Allseas is focused on comprehensive project implementation, including design, material and equipment procurement, construction, and commissioning.
Pioneering Spirit is the world’s largest construction vessel (477 meters in length and 124 meters in width). The vessel is designed to lay pipelines in deep-water areas, as well as to install and dismantle large oil and gas offshore platforms. The ship is owned by Allseas.
In Russia, a landfall has been built near the town of Anapa and the ongoing start-up operations will be finished in 2018. In Turkey, a receiving terminal is being constructed near the settlement of Kiyikoy.