Bulgaria eyes additional gas imports from Azerbaijan – minister

BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 3 By Leman Zeynalova – Trend: Bulgaria intends to negotiate with Azerbaijan on additional gas imports in the case of termination of supplies from Russia, said the country’s energy minister Alexander Nikolov, Trend reports citing Bulgarian media. He made the remarks during a parliamentary commission meeting. The minister pointed out that there are real alternative sources, including the Southern gas Corridor, in the case of problems with Russian supplies. He believes that it is also possible to import liquified natural gas from Greece. Bulgaria is expected to import 1 billion cubic meters of Azerbaijani gas via the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB). However, due to delays in the construction of the pipeline, the country currently receives only one third of this volume. The IGB project enables the transmission of gas and supplies from new sources, making it key to Bulgaria's energy security and part of the national plan for diversification of gas sources. Currently, half of IGB’s capacity - a total of 1,57 bcm/y, is already reserved under long term contracts for up to 25 years. Due to its strategic location, the pipeline has great synergy with the planned LNG terminal near Alexandroupolis, Greece. The terminal’s commercial launch planned for the end of 2023, may additionally boost IGB’s capacity to a total of 5 bcm/y. The IGB pipeline is scheduled for commissioning in July this year. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @Lyaman_Zeyn