IGB is crucial for strengthening South East Europe’s internal energy market – Kadri Simson

BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 13. The Greek-Bulgarian interconnector (IGB) is a Project of Common Interest, and EU considers this interconnection as a crucial piece of infrastructure needed to diversify South East Europe and strengthen the internal energy market, said the EU Commission for Energy Kadri Simson on behalf of the European Commission on October 13, Trend reports via the Commission. She recalled that the Bulgarian and Greek Regulatory Authorities have certified the operator of the Greece-Bulgaria Gas Interconnector, ICGB AD, as a transmission system operator (TSO) for gas, conditional to the project ICGB AD fulfilling some requirements related to its corporate governance. “ICGB AD reported to the Commission that it was taking several measures to finalize the works necessary for the commercial launch of the IGB. The Commission held regular contacts with the project company and regulatory authorities as well as the governments of Bulgaria and Greece throughout the project implementation. It closely monitored the final steps of project implementation, including those related to certification. As a result, the IGB has successfully been launched on 1 October 2022. The Commission has no evidence that the project implementation has been delayed due to obstruction, but is aware that there have been delays with constructing the pipeline and consequentially with receiving some final approvals required for the pipeline to enter into operation. Any deliberate obstruction could be considered a crime against the financial interests of the EU, which could potentially fall within the European Public Prosecutor’s remit,” noted Simson. IGB connects Bulgaria with the Southern Gas Corridor and will enable secure supplies from a variety of sources to several countries in Southeast and Central Europe, including Moldova and Ukraine. The pipeline is set to transport 1 billion cubic meters of Azerbaijani gas per year to Bulgaria. Its capacity is 3 billion cubic meters with the possibility of expanding to 5 billion cubic meters per year. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @Lyaman_Zeyn