BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 29. So far, over 11.3 million megawatt-hours or more than 962 million cubic meters of natural gas have been transported through the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria, the ICGB, the pipeline operator, told Trend.
Commercial operations of the Greece-Bulgaria Interconnector commenced on October 1, 2022. Since the start of the current heating season, the interconnector has been responsible for supplying almost one-third of Bulgaria's winter natural gas consumption. Serving as the primary pathway for diverse natural gas supplies to Bulgaria, the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria ensures enhanced supply security and source diversification. This development significantly contributes to fostering competition within the natural gas market, thereby enabling optimized prices for both businesses and domestic consumers in the country.
The gas pipeline spans a total distance of 182 km and features a pipe diameter of 32 inches. It has been designed with a capacity of up to 3 billion m3/year for gas transportation from Greece to Bulgaria. However, considering the market demand and the capabilities of neighboring gas transmission systems, the capacity of the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria allows for potential expansion up to 5 billion m3/year. This can be achieved by constructing an additional compressor station to accommodate higher volumes of gas.