INTERVIEW: Greece-Bulgaria gas link to run market tests for capacity expansion in H2 - SEE NEWS

Apr 28, 2023 15:31 EEST
Antonia Kokalova-Gray

SOFIA April 28 (SeeNews) - ICGB, the operator of the Greece-Bulgaria natural gas interconnector (IGB), is planning to launch market tests in the second half of 2023 to gauge potential demand ahead of a planned capacity expansion, chief executive Teodora Georgieva told SeeNews.

ICGB has begun assessing the pipeline's infrastructure readiness to carry hydrogen as well, Georgieva told SeeNews in an interview earlier this month at the Budapest LNG Summit.

In case of sufficient market demand, the expansion of the IGB's capacity to 5 billion cubic metres (bcm) per year from the current 3 bcm/year will also help ensure the flow of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from terminals in Greece - the operational facility at Revithoussa and planned terminals like the one in Alexandroupolis. ICGB is already working on this opportunity with Greek transmission system operator DESFA, according to the chief executive. Building a new compressor station on the Greek side is one of the projects that will advance capacity expansion.

New pipeline from Greece to Bulgaria offsets Russian gas cut - ABC NEWS / ASSOCIATED PRESS

July 12, 2022, 10:54 PM

The Associated Press

ATHENS, Greece -- The leaders of Greece and Bulgaria on Friday marked the completion of a new pipeline that will supply natural gas from Azerbaijan to Bulgaria, whose vital supply of Russian gas was cut off in April amid the fallout over Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis stressed the importance of the new link as an alternative supply line for Bulgaria, as neighboring Greece jockeys to become a regional energy transport hub.

“This isn't just a gas pipeline, but a crucial south-north energy bridge,” Mitsotakis said during a ceremony in northeastern Greece.

Greece-Bulgaria gas interconnector operational from 1 July - EURACTIV

May 27, 2022
Krassen Nikolov

The launch of the gas interconnector became possible after the Bulgarian and Greek energy regulators took a joint decision to licence the gas connection operator – ICGB. The decision was fast-tracked due to the war in Ukraine, which has led to the suspension of Gazprom’s gas supplies to Bulgaria. Authorities in Sofia have rejected Russian demands to change contracts and pay for natural gas in roubles.

The gas connection between Bulgaria and Greece will start operating on 1 July, with Bulgaria poised to receive one billion cubic metres of gas from Azerbaijan – enough to meet the country’s needs during summer, with prices expected to be lower than Russian gas.

The launch of the gas interconnector became possible after the Bulgarian and Greek energy regulators took a joint decision to licence the gas connection operator – ICGB. The decision was fast-tracked due to the war in Ukraine, which has led to the suspension of Gazprom’s gas supplies to Bulgaria. Authorities in Sofia have rejected Russian demands to change contracts and pay for natural gas in roubles.

Half of Bulgaria-Greece gas link capacity already reserved - SEE NEWS

Jan 26, 2022 17:43 EEST
Aleksia Petrova

SOFIA (Bulgaria), January 26 (SeeNews) - ICGB, the company developing the Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria project, said that a total of 1.57 bcm, half of the gas link's capacity, has already been reserved ahead of its planned launch of commercial operations in July.

"Four out of the five shippers that have booked capacity are entirely new to the Bulgarian market and that leads us to believe the international and market interest in the project will only be growing after its commercial launch," ICGB said in a statement quoting Teodora Georgieva, its executive officer on the Bulgarian side.

ICGB also said that it has signed a contract with Germany-based PRISMA European Capacity Platform, Europe’s leading gas capacity trading platform, marking a major milestone in the preparations for the pipeline’s launch of commercial operation.

Greece turning into gas hub - KATHIMERINI

23.JAN.2022 • 10:29
Chryssa Liaggou

Greece will add two more liquefied natural gas terminals for storage and gasification, thereby strengthening its gas supply security and obtaining a strong role in transit by making the most of its strategic location and its new corridors for the supply of Europe and the Balkans.

Greek energy groups want to make the most of the opportunity of gas being the bridge fuel on the way to clean energy, and of Balkan countries’ need to diversify their sources and not be so reliant on Gazprom. They have therefore designed and are promoting infrastructure for their entry into the Greek LNG system. The fuel will use Greece’s pipelines (the Trans Adriatic Pipeline, the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria and its connectors, and the plan for the interconnection with North Macedonia) to reach the neighboring countries and reduce their dependence on Turkey, which besides hosting pipelines has also invested in LNG infrastructure, making it a hub for Southeast Europe.

Greece's Corinth produces 62km of line pipes for Greece-Bulgaria gas link - SEENEWS

Feb 17, 2020 14:13 EEST
Mario Tanev

SOFIA (Bulgaria), February 17 (SeeNews) - Greece's Corinth Pipeworks has completed the production of the first 62 kilometres of line pipes for the Greece-Bulgaria gas interconnector project - ICGB, Bulgaria's energy ministry said.

Pipes have been loaded on six trains, three of which are already in Bulgaria, the ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

The first production lot is expected to be delivered in full in March, which will provide the gas link construction company with all necessary types and sizes of pipelines.

ICGB, the project company developing the gas link, signed contracts for the supply of pipes and construction of the interconnector with Corinth Pipeworks Industry and J&P-Avax, respectively, last year. The construction of the 123-km section of the interconnector on Bulgarian soil will begin in 2020, the energy ministry said at the time.

The pipeline, which has a total estimated cost of 220 million euro ($242.7 million), will connect the Greek gas transmission system in the area of Komotini to the Bulgarian gas transmission system in the area of Stara Zagora. The planned length of the pipeline is 182 km and the projected capacity will be up to 3 billion cu m per year in the direction from Greece to Bulgaria.

ICGB signs contract with owner's engineer for Greece-Bulgaria gas link - SEE NEWS

Jun 10, 2019 11:46 EEST
Mario Tanev

SOFIA (Bulgaria), June 10 (SeeNews) - ICGB, the company developing the Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria project, said that it has signed a 5.67 million euro ($6.41 million) contract with the TIBEI consortium, which won the tender for selecting an owner's engineer for the project.

The contract was signed on May 20, according to a notice by the ICGB, published on Friday.

The TIBEI consortium comprises Belgium's Tractebel Engineering S.A, Italy's Tractebel Engineering SRL, Austria's Intber GmbH and Bulgarian companies Ipsilon Consult and Bulgaria Engineering.

"The commitment involves assisting the Contracting Entity in the implementation of the project during the construction phase until the pipeline enters into operation and management of all the main contracts related to the project - including the contract for the supply of line pipes and the contract for the award of design, procurement and construction," ICGB has said previously.

Bulgaria begins construction of gas link - PIPELINES INTERNATIONAL

30 May 2019

Kirkovo, Bulgaria, has started building a gas pipeline with Greece that will end the Balkan country’s total dependence on Russian gas.

According to Reuters, the 240 million euro ($268 million) gas pipeline will help diversify supplies in southeastern Europe. The 182-km interconnector link between Bulgaria and Greece will be ready by the end of 2020 to transport mainly Azeri gas to Bulgari.

The 32 inch (813 mm) diameter pipeline diameter has a projected capacity of up to 3 billion m3/a, with the option to increase its capacity up to 5 billion m3/a following market evolution.

Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov says, “The project is of strategic importance not only for our two countries, but for the whole of Europe, including the countries in the Western Balkans”, according to Reuters.

“It will lead to real diversification of gas supplies”.

The Natural Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria Pipeline is being constructed by the ICGB AD Joint Venture, comprising BEH EAD (50 per cent) and IGI Poseidon (50 per cent).

The construction will begin works near the village of Kirkovo, 15 km north of the border with Greece.

ICGB selects contractor for supervision for construction of the gas interconnector Greece-Bulgaria - ICGB AD

24/APRIL/2019

The project company finalized one of the last key public procurements to start the construction work for the IGB project

The project company ICGB successfully completed the public procurement procedure with subject “Selection of contractor for construction supervision for the construction of the gas interconnector Greece-Bulgaria”. Three offers were submitted within the announced deadline. The estimated value of the public procurement is BGN 1 300 000 excluding VAT.

The construction supervision will be carried out by the joint venture “EKO BUL CONTROL”, which consists of three legal entities: ECOENGINEERING LTD, BUL STROY CONTROL ENGINEERING and CONTROL ENGINEERING. The selection of a contractor for this procedure is based on the selection criteria price/quality ratio. The total cost for the construction supervision activities for the IGB gas pipeline proposed by “EKO BUL CONTROL” is BGN 766 000 excluding VAT.

"The finalization of this procedure is a great success for the project as the tender for construction supervision is one of the key steps to ensuring the management of the construction in the most professional and efficient way", announced the Executive Officers of ICGB Teodora Georgieva and Konstantinos Karayannakos.

J&P AVAX files lowest bid to build Bulgaria-Greece gas link - KATHIMERINI / REUTERS

TUESDAY APRIL 23, 2019, 15:04

Greece’s J&P AVAX filed the lowest offer in a tender to design and build a gas pipeline between Bulgaria and Greece, project manager ICGB said on Tuesday.

The company offered a price of 144.85 million euros ($163 million) to build a 182 km (113 mile) pipeline which Sofia hopes will become operational in 2020 to transport Azeri gas to Bulgaria and end its almost complete dependence on Russian gas supplies.

A consortium of two Bulgarian companies and Italy’s Bonatti submitted an offer of 229.3 million euros in the tender.

ICGB said it would examine the offers and pick a winner by the end of May. The pipeline will have an annual capacity of 3 billion cubic metres.

The European Commission has said it would invest 33 million euros of European Union funds in the project.

ICGB is 50 percent owned by Bulgaria’s state-held BEH energy holding company. The remaining shares are held by the Greek gas company DEPA and Italy’s Edison. 

Bulgaria-Greece Gas Pipeline Project Receives Initial Bids - NOVINITE / REUTERS

September 13, 2018, Thursday // 09:53

Reporting by Tsvetelia Tsolova; Editing by Edmund Blair

Italy’s Saipem, a consortium including Azeri state firm SOCAR and nine other groups or firms have submitted initial bids to build a gas pipeline between Bulgaria and Greece, the company overseeing delivery of the project said.

ICGB launched a tender in April for design, procurement and construction of the 182-km (113-mile) pipeline that is estimated to cost 145 million euros (8 million). The contract winner will have 18 months to complete the project.

Other firms which have filed initial bids also include Italy’s Sicim, Greek company J&P Avax, Turkey’s Fernas, a group including Sicilsaldo, Nuova Ghizzoni and Inrakat, and a consortium of Germany’s Max Streicher and Greece’s Terna.

ICGB will draw up a shortlist of final bidders.

Sofia plans to use the pipeline to receive one billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas per year from Azerbaijan’s Shah Deniz 2 gas field after 2020, ending its almost complete reliance on Russian gas supplies.

ICGB to choose pipe supplier for Greece-Bulgaria gas link in June - SEE NEWS

Apr 19, 2018 13:11 CEST

Mario Tanev / Bulgaria's Ministry of Energy

SOFIA (Bulgaria), April 19 (SeeNews) - The supplier of pipes for the Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (ICGB) project is expected to be selected in June, Bulgaria's energy ministry has said.

The shortlisted candidates will be announced by the end of April, the energy ministry said in a statement following a meeting of energy minister Temenuzhka Petkova with her Greek counterpart Giorgos Stathakis on Wednesday.

ICGB pipe supply tender attracts ten bids - SEE NEWS

16 March 2018
Bulgarian Ministry of Energy

SOFIA (Bulgaria), March 16 (SeeNews) - Bulgaria's energy ministry said on Friday that a tender for the supply of pipes for the Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria project has attracted ten offers.

Bids were filed by Jindaw SAW Ltd, JSC Zagorsk Pipe Plant, Welspun Corp. Ltd, Salzgitter Mannesmann International GmbH, Noksel Celik Boru Sanayii A.S., Umran Celik Boru Sanayii A.S., Erciyas Celik Boru Sanayi A.S., Toplivo-2, Korinth Pipeworks S.A., Pipe Industry S.A. and Public Joint Stock Company Chelyabinsk Pipe Plant, the energy ministry said in a statement.

This is the first of several key tenders, which will ensure the actual commencing of construction of the Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria.

The tender for the construction of the interconnector will be launched in April, the ministry also said. In addition, tenders for supervision of construction works and for carrying out an archaeological study are due to be opened.

The IGB pipeline will connect the Greek gas transmission system in the area of Komotini to the Bulgarian gas transmission system in the area of Stara Zagora.

ICGB to launch tender for Greece-Bulgaria gas link construction by end-2017 - SEE NEWS

SOFIA (Bulgaria), September 12 (SeeNews) - ICGB, the project company developing the Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (ICGB) said on Tuesday it plans to launch several tender procedures for the construction of the pipeline by the end of the year.

"The company is in the process of preparation of the respective procedures for assigning the main contracts which are necessary for the start of the construction - selection of owner's engineer for the project; line pipe supplies; assigning of the detailed engineering, procurement and construction (EPC contract); archaeological research and selection of the construction supervision company," Sofia-registered ICGB said in a statement.

On September 1, ICGB submitted an application for a construction permit for the Bulgarian part of the pipeline. The permit is expected to be issued by the regional development ministry in the first half of September 2017.

Bulgaria to open tender for building gas link with Greece in autumn - SEE NEWS

Ministry of Energy/All rights reserved.

SOFIA (Bulgaria), July 25 2017

Bulgaria intends to launch a tender for the construction of a gas interconnection with Greece this autumn, energy minister Temenuzhka Petkova said on Tuesday.

In parallel, Bulgaria also intends to launch a new gas market test this autumn, Petkova said in a press release following a meeting with U.S. ambassador to Bulgaria, Eric Rubin.

The construction of the interconnector Greece-Bulgaria is planned to start in 2018. The link providing for gas flow in both directions is expected to become operational in 2020.

The project is being implemented according to the planned timeframe, Petkova said.

Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, Hungary to connect gas networks - ROMANIA INSIDER

20 Jul 2017 

Gas companies in Bulgaria, Greece, Romania and Hungary have agreed to unite their gas networks to increase the supply security in South-Eastern Europe, the Bulgarian Energy Ministry said yesterday, Reuters and BTA reported.

State-owned Transgaz (Romania), Bulgartransgaz (Bulgaria), DESFA (Greece), FGSZ (Hungary) and ICGB, the company responsible for the development, construction and operation of the Greece-Bulgaria Interconnector, signed a memorandum yesterday in Bucharest.

It will be the basis for building the necessary gas pipeline system to transport natural gas to transit countries and the European market, from Greece through Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary and vice versa, reads a press release of the Bulgarian Energy Ministry.

IGB launch date reset for first quarter of 2020 in revised project plan - ENERGY PRESS

10/05/2017

Construction work on the prospective IGB (Greek-Bulgarian Interconnector) has been rescheduled to start within 2018 and the commercial launch set for the first quarter of 2020, according to the project’s latest timeline revision, presented by its contractor, ICGB, to European Commission officials in Brussels late last month.

ICGB presented its revised IGB plan as part of the effort to seek PCI (Projects of Common Interest) classification, which would ensure EU funds. Other European PCI candidate projects were also presented by their developers.

The IGB, whose length and diameter are planned to measure 182 km and 32 inches, respectively, will link Komotini in Greece’s northeast with Stara Zagora in Bulgaria.

Bulgaria-Greece gas link construction to start in early 2018 - energy min - SEE NEWS

SOFIA (Bulgaria), February 22

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.

Greece-Bulgaria pipeline receives bids - WORLD PIPELINES

Thursday, 08 December 2016 09:17
Anna Nicklin, Editorial Assistant

According to a news statement from ICGB – the joint venture building the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB) natural gas pipeline – five offers were submitted for the use of the pipeline on a long term basis for the binding phase of the market test.

IGB is estimated to cost approximately €220 million (US$235 million). The pipeline will transport gas with a total capacity of 4.3 billion m3 of natural gas. According to the statement, the second phase of the market test saw capacity amount to 2.7 billion m3, of which 1.57 billion m3 are reserved. It is expected that the IGB pipeline will connect to the Trans Adriatic pipeline (TAP) to, in turn, allow Bulgaria to receive Azerbaijani gas.

Five submit binding offers for use of Greece-Bulgaria gas link - REUTERS

Sat Dec 3, 2016 | 1:02pm ESTReporting by Angel Krasimirov; Editing by Toby Chopra

Five binding offers were submitted for the use of the natural gas pipeline between Bulgaria and Greece, the joint venture building the link said in a statement.

Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB), estimated to cost 220 million euros ($235 million), will transport gas with a total capacity of 4.3 billion cubic meters.

"The announced capacity within the second phase of the market test amounts to 2.7 billion cubic meters, 1.57 billion cubic meters of which are reserved," joint-venture ICGB said in the statement.