BAKU, Azerbaijan, Jan.31
By Leman Zeynalova – Trend:
The Nis-Dimitrovgrad gas pipeline, which will connect Serbia to the Southern Gas Corridor, should become operational by 2023, the Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Serbia and the Minister of Mining and Energy, prof. Dr. Zorana Mihajlovic told Trend.
“Serbia's goal in the gas sector is to achieve energy security, which requires not only diversification of gas routes, but also the diversification of suppliers. At the beginning of the year, Serbia got an additional line of gas supply, but our goal is to have a diversification of sources and to connect with all our neighbors via gas interconnectors. The first interconnection we are building is Serbia-Bulgaria, i.e. the Nis-Dimitrovgrad gas pipeline, for which financing has been provided and contracts have been signed. The construction of the gas pipeline should start this year and the pipeline should become operational by 2023. The innterconnector will connect Serbia to the Southern Gas Corridor, but also to some other sources of supply,” she said.
Mihajlovic noted that Diversification of routes of natural gas supply contributes to ensuring energy security and security of supply of Europe with this energy source.
“The current gas crisis has shown that the development of projects of this type is of crucial importance for the supply of the entire continent, because relying on only one supplier is not enough to ensure the security of supply. The Serbia-Bulgaria gas interconnection will provide Serbia with the possibility of getting natural gas from other suppliers, such as LNG terminals in Greece and TAP and TANAP gas pipelines, which are a part of the Southern Gas Corridor, which transports gas from the Caspian and Middle East regions,” noted the deputy PM.
She noted that in the future, after the completion of the Eastern Mediterranean (EastMed) project, gas will also come from the coastal reserves of the Leviathan field, i.e. Cyprus and Israel, which is important for the energy security of Serbia and the region.
“Bulgaria is already being supplied with gas from Azerbaijan, and from the LNG terminal in Greece. We hope that, following that example, we will be able to diversify our routes of natural gas supply. In addition to contributing to the security of supply this should also certainly have a favorable effect on the leveling of gas prices on the Serbian market,” added Mihajlovic.
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