The Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) will deliver 6 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas to Turkey by June 30 this year, which marks the pipeline’s second year of commercial operations, TANAP's General Manager Saltuk Düzyol said Thursday, EDNews.net reports citing Daily Sabah.

In an exclusive interview with Anadolu Agency (AA) on the second anniversary of TANAP's official launch on June 12, Düzyol stated that TANAP's gas deliveries to Turkey have incrementally increased from the first year when it initially delivered 2 bcm.

According to Düzyol, TANAP is a significant symbol of successful cooperation between Turkey and Azerbaijan, with the official launch ceremony on June 12, 2018, presided over by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev.

The project is also the most important part of the Southern Gas Corridor, which has strategic value for the European Union and global energy geopolitics, Düzyol said.

"With a length of 1,850 kilometers, TANAP is the longest and biggest full-scale natural gas project in the Middle East and Europe," he said.

The $40 billion Southern Gas Corridor project includes the Shah Deniz 2 field, the South Caucasus Pipeline and TANAP. Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Bulgaria, Greece, Albania and Italy are countries that are involved in the 3,500-kilometer project.

TANAP, with investments of over $7 billion, is the largest section of the Southern Gas Corridor project. The pipeline stretches from the Turkish-Georgian border to the Turkish-Greek border to supply natural gas to both Turkey and European countries.

A total of 16 bcm of gas will be delivered through the project out of which TANAP will deliver 6 bcm to Turkey while transferring 10 bcm via the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) on the Turkey-Greece border. The delivery capacity of TANAP is projected to expand to 24 bcm-31 bcm over time.

Düzyol explained that TANAP is a new source of supply for Turkey while also creating supply and route diversity. Azerbaijan will now become Turkey’s second-biggest gas supplier after Russia with gas flow through TANAP and a new supplier for EU countries.

“The project will contribute to the energy security of these countries and increase gas-to-gas competition,” he said.

It will also allow Azerbaijan, for the first time, to export its gas to Europe, which Düzyol said would increase the country's revenues and also develop its relations with the EU.