BAKU, Azerbaijan, December 4. Serbia has completed the construction of the interconnector with Bulgaria, which will enable the country to import gas from Azerbaijan, said Serbia’s Minister of Mining and Energy Dubravka Đedović Handanović, Trend reports via the ministry.
"The Serbia-Bulgaria gas pipeline is the first major energy project that was completed on time, in 12 months. Just one year ago, we started the works and in 12 months of dedicated work, 109 kilometers of new gas pipeline, four measurement and regulation stations in Pirot, Dimitrovgrad, Bela Palanka and Nis, as well as one large transfer station in Trupale were built. I expect the gas pipeline to be put into trial operation by the end of the week," said the minister.
Đedović Handanović recalled that a commercial agreement was signed for the supply of up to 400 million cubic meters of gas from Azerbaijan by the end of next year.
The minister pointed out that the Serbia-Bulgaria gas pipeline is also important because of the gasification of the southeastern part of Serbia and the green transition process.
"This gas pipeline is important for the citizens and the economy in this part of Serbia, especially for the connections to Pirot, Dimitrovgrad, Bela Palanka and the development of the secondary gas network in Niš. This infrastructure will enable the connection of the economy and a large number of households to gas. In the process of green transition, it is important that we have a secure supply of gas, and we can switch from using coal and fuel oil to gas, which is a cleaner source of energy," said Đedović Handanović.
The minister added that this project strengthens Serbia's position on the gas map of Europe, because the Serbia-Bulgaria gas pipeline with a capacity of 1.8 billion cubic meters enables the transit of gas from Azerbaijan and the Caspian region to the countries of Central Europe.
Follow the author on X: @Lyaman_Zeyn