BAKU, Azerbaijan, Jan.21
By Leman Zeynalova - Trend:
The successful implementation of the project for a liquefied natural gas terminal near the Greek city of Alexandroupolis is of particular importance for the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB) project, as it will create more opportunities for gas transmission through the Greece-Bulgaria interconnector, Trend reports with reference to ICGB AD.
The two energy projects are being developed in full synergy, relying on the active support of both Bulgaria and Greece, said the company.
“The Bulgarian government has officially declared that Bulgargaz EAD will reserve additional capacity for transmission in the interconnector Greece-Bulgaria – up to 500 million cubic meters per year for a period of 3 to 5 years. With a decision of the Council of Ministers Bulgargaz EAD will participate in the binding phase of the market test for booking capacity in the LNG terminal near Alexandroupolis, reserving up to 500 million cubic meters per year, but not less than 300 million cubic meters per year for a period of 3 to 5 years. For its part, Bulgargaz EAD is committed to contracting LNG for consumers in Bulgaria at competitive price terms through IGB. Earlier it was announced that the Bulgarian company Bulgartransgaz had signed a preliminary contract for the acquisition of 20 percent of the capital of the company developing the Greek project,” said ICGB AD.
As the company said, the LNG terminal has excellent synchronization with the gas pipeline project between Bulgaria and Greece because of its strategic location - the facility will be in close proximity to one of the interconnector’s entry points in the area of Komotini, Greece.
“This provides a technological advantage in transportation the natural gas delivered to the terminal to customers in Bulgaria through IGB. Finalizing the project will help reaching the full capacity of IGB and will provide additional natural gas to markets in Southeast Europe, offering new sources and delivery routes. Both projects are crucial for achieving diversification for Bulgaria and the Balkans, boosting competition and enhancing the security of gas supplies in the region,” according to the company.
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 Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria project envisages a two-stage development.
In the first stage, the pipeline capacity will be 3 billion cubic meters of gas, of which 2.7 billion cubic meters will be offered for the long-term market, the remaining share of 0.3 billion cubic meters in the short term.
In a second phase, also depending on the evolution of the market, the capacity of the pipeline can be increased to 5.3 billion cubic meters of gas thanks to the addition of a compression station: 4.5 billion cubic meters of gas 0.5 billion cubic meters of short-term gas will be offered for long-term products.
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