(ANSA) - BRUXELLES - The Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) is now 70% completed in Albania and Greece, the company in charge of planning, developing and building the TAP natural gas pipeline says in a statement. 539km out of 765km in the countries have been cleared and over 45% of welded steel pipes are already in the ground.

Nearly 16 months after construction began the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) is now more than 50% completed across all the countries involved in the project, the company explains.

Approximately 95% of the total 55,000 pipes to be used for the construction of the pipeline have been received in Greece, Albania and Italy. In total - adds the society - TAP will invest over 55 million euros in social and environmental investment (SEI) in Greece, Albania and Italy.

"Our project is built with the utmost care for the environment", TAP Managing Director Luca Schieppati points out.

The teams involved in the project are now working "very carefully" to "ensure that the land on which construction has been completed is returned to the owners or users in its original condition or better", he adds. The company, he pledges, wants to make "the benefits of our project tangible across all those communities crossed by the pipeline". (ANSA).