Bulgaria's energy ministry said on Wednesday that the construction of the gas interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB) will start in the beginning of 2018.
The 182 km long IGB pipeline will connect the northeastern Greek city of Komotini with Stara Zagora, in southern Bulgaria. The link is estimated to cost 220 million euro ($241.8 million).
"The energy minister of Azerbaijan, Natig Aliyev, confirmed before Bulgaria's caretaker energy minister Nikolay Pavlov his country's commitment to deliver 1 billion cu m of gas annually to Bulgaria," the energy ministry said in a statement. One of the conditions for the Azeri gas supplies is the construction of the IGB link.
The pipeline will carry 3 billion cu m of natural gas annually in its initial stage and will have a maximum capacity of 5 billion cu m per year. It will eventually be connected to the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), which will carry Azeri gas to Europe through Greece.
The gas interconnector project is being implemented by joint venture company ICGB, registered in Bulgaria in 2011, with state-owned Bulgarian Energy Holding (BEH) and Greece-registered IGI Poseidon holding equal shares. Greek public gas corporation DEPA and Italian energy group Edison own 50% each of IGI Poseidon.
($=0.9515 euro)
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