US Welcomes BTC Pipeline Company

(Tbilisi, Civil Georgia, August 6, 2002) – “The United States welcomes the formation of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline Company [BTC Co]. This represents a major step forward for the pipeline project,” the statement of the US Department of State issued on August 2 says.  

On August 1 in London, the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline owners signed the documents, which formally create “The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Pipeline Company” (“BTC Co”). By forming an operating company BTC gets a formal go-ahead.

The BTC pipeline will export crude oil 1,760 kilometers from Azerbaijan and the Caspian region, through Georgia, to Ceyhan on the Turkish Mediterranean coast.

“We congratulate the governments of Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkey on this achievement, and we reaffirm our support for the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline,” the statement says.