Bulgaria-Serbia Interconnector Gas Pipeline
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The Bulgaria-Serbia Interconnector Gas Pipeline, also called the IBS Interconnector and the Nis-Sofia Gas Pipeline, is a proposed pipeline in Bulgaria and Serbia.[1]
Location
The pipeline will run from Nis, Serbia to Sofia, Bulgaria.[2] The exact route appears in the European Commission's March 2018 update on the project[3]and page 74 on Bulgartransgaz network development plan.[4]
Project Details
- Owner: Bulgartransgaz, Gastrans
- Proposed capacity: 1.8 billion cubic meters a year
- Diameter: 700 cm/ 28 inches[5]
- Length: 170 km / 105.63 miles[6]
- Status: Proposed[6]
- Start Year: 2022[3][7]
- Financing: EUR 49.6 million European Commission grant to Serbia[1]; EUR 25 million European Investment Bank loan for the Serbian section[8]; a EUR 27.6 million grant to Bulgaria from the Connecting Europe Facility.[9]
Background
The Bulgaria Serbia Interconnection will have a capacity of 1 to 1.8 billion cubic metres a year from Bulgaria to Serbia, and 0.15 billion cubic metres a year from Serbia to Bulgaria. The project forms part of the EU’s Projects of Common Interest (PCI) and is being treated as a priority for the Central and South Eastern Europe Energy Connectivity High Level Group (CESEC). The pipeline will provide a new supply route from Bulgaria to Serbia, as well as to other parts of the South-East European region, enabling access to liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Greece, Azeri gas from the Southern Gas Corridor, and gas from Black Sea offshore production.[1]
Its European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas TYNDP code is TRA-F-137.[10]
Financing
The European Commission is funding the Serbian side of the pipeline with a grant of EUR 49.6 million[1], and the European Investment Bank approved a EUR 25 million loan in December 2018 for the construction of the Serbian section.[8] In 2020, Bulgaria was awarded a EUR 27.6 million grant under the Connecting Europe Facility for construction works.[9]
One of the project promoters, Bulgartransgaz, a state-owned gas transmission system operator, announced in September 2020 that it had borrowed EUR 455 million from banks to finance various key projects such as the Bulgaria-Serbia Interconnector. Bulgartransgaz signed loan agreements with ING Bank, Citibank Europe, Raiffeisenbank Bulgaria, UniCredit Bulbank, the International Bank for Economic Co-operation, Eurobank Bulgaria, DSK Bank, and a consortium comprising state-owned Bulgarian Development Bank and the International Investment Bank.[11]
Articles and resources
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 EU investment in gas interconnection between Bulgaria and Serbia to enhance energy security in the region European Union, May 17, 2018
- ↑ European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas (October 2020). "TYNDP 2020 - MAP – Transmission" (PDF). ENTSOG. Retrieved December 4, 2020.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Gas interconnection, European Commission, March 2018
- ↑ Bulgartransgaz EAD (March 2020). "2020 - 2029 TEN-YEAR NETWORK DEVELOPMENT PLAN OF BULGARTRANSGAZ EAD" (PDF). bulgartransgaz.bg. Retrieved September 25, 2020.
- ↑ ENTSOG. "Pipelines including Compressor Stations". ENTSOG.EU. Retrieved August 14, 2020.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas (November 25, 2020). "TYNDP 2020 Annex A.2 – Project Tables". ENTSOG. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
- ↑ Bulgartransgaz EAD (March 2020). "2020 - 2029 TEN-YEAR NETWORK DEVELOPMENT PLAN OF BULGARTRANSGAZ EAD" (PDF). bulgartransgaz.bg. Retrieved September 25, 2020.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 GAS INTERCONNECTOR NIS-DIMITROVGRAD-BULGARIA, European Investment Bank, Dec. 3, 2018
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 List of actions selected for receiving financial assistance under the CEF Energy Call for Proposals 2020, European Commission, accessed Nov. 24, 2020
- ↑ European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas. "Not-modelled projects - entsog". ENTSOG.eu. Retrieved August 24, 2020.
- ↑ Mario Tanev, Bulgartransgaz borrows 455 mln euro, in loan talks with two more banks - report, SeeNews, Sep 18, 2020