Eni on Tuesday agreed to extend through 2029 an accord to transport Algerian natural gas through Tunisia and ensure the reinvestment needed to modernise infrastructure, the Italian energy giant said in a statement.
Under the agreement, Eni undertakes to operate the pipeline for the next 10 years, through its Trans Tunisian Pipeline Company subsidiary, said the statement.
The accord further confirms "Eni's long-standing commitment to North African countries, not only in hydrocarbon exploration and production, but also in managing transport infrastructure, marketing petroleum products, the chemical sector and producing energy from renewable sources," the statement underlined.
The agreement was signed by Eni's chief executive officer Claudio Descalzi and Tunisia's industry minister Slim Feriani, in the presence of Tunisia's premier Youssef Chahed, the statement said.
Tuesday's accord follows ones reached with Algeria's Sonatrach in May for the purchase of gas and transport in the Strait of Sicily and completes "the contractual framework" allowing Eni to import Algerian gas into Italy.
With a transport capacity of approximately 34 billion cubic metres per year, the pipeline plays a key role in Italian and Tunisian energy supply and will continue to do so in future, according to Eni.
The pipeline "contributes to the diversification of sources and to the energy transition in the Italian market," the statement said.
Built in the early 1980s and strengthened subsequently in several phases, the trans-Tunisian pipeline consists of two lines, 48 inches wide and around 370km long, from the Algerian-Tunisian border near Oued Saf to the Cap Bon headland, as well as five compression stations.
