Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept.10
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
The intergovernmental agreement between Greece and Bulgaria to stabilize the tax framework on the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB) for 25 years will be signed soon, Greek Minister of Energy and Environment Kostis Hatzidakis said, Trend reports citing S&P Global Platts.
Speaking at the energy forum in Thessaloniki, Greece, Hatzidakis expressed hope that the agreement will be signed in the coming weeks.
"There are some details to be addressed, but I believe that in the coming weeks we'll sign," he said, stressing that the pipeline is important not only for Greece and Bulgaria, but for the whole region.
Bulgaria's deputy energy minister Zecho Stankov agreed that one of Bulgaria's main priorities is security of supply. "We are doing a lot for diversification," he said, pointing also to the IGB and links to Serbia and North Macedonia.
"Of course this interconnector will give supply security for Bulgaria and whole region," he said, adding that Bulgaria planned to take 1 billion cubic meters of gas from Azerbaijan via IGB from 2020.
IGB is a gas pipeline, which will allow Bulgaria to receive Azerbaijani gas, in particular, the gas produced from Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz 2 gas and condensate field. IGB is expected to be connected to TAP via which gas from the Shah Deniz field will be delivered to the European markets.
The initial capacity of IGB will be 3 billion cubic meters of gas.
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