BAKU, Azerbaijan, April 14. The entire length of the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB) and all eight block valve stations are now successfully hydrotested, the ICGB AD, the project company, told Trend.
The hydrotest - a method for verifying a pipeline’s safety - was applied to the pipeline’s all 182.6km and the eight block valve stations along the gas pipeline route.
Also known as hydrostatic testing, this is a method for verifying a pipeline’s integrity after it has been built. The test involves filling a pipeline segment with water until it is at a pressure that is higher than the pipeline will ever operate with natural gas. This allows the pipeline company to validate the safe operating pressure of the pipeline and ensure that the line is structurally sound, verifying its quality.
"The finalization of this process is a major step towards the completion of the interconnector and its commissioning. The IGB project is strategic and increasingly important not only for the two countries implementing it, but also for the entire region, so we rely on the EPC contractor to fulfill its commitments as soon as possible so that the relevant institutions can proceed with all administrative procedures required for commissioning", said the two Executive Directors of the ICGB project company Teodora Georgieva and Konstantinos Karayannakos.
The IGB project is of key importance for increasing security of supply and for ensuring diversification of natural gas sources for Bulgaria and the region of Southeast Europe. At the regional level, IGB will provide access to the gas transmission network for Bulgarian municipalities and regions that didn’t have an option for connectivity. The interconnector with Greece is an entirely new route for the transmission of natural gas to Europe and will give Bulgaria and the region access to supplies from new sources. The project will connect the country with the Southern Gas Corridor and has excellent synergy with other major energy projects such as TAP, TANAP, EastMed and the LNG terminal at Alexandroupolis.
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