site.btaBulgaria, Greece, Serbia Energy Ministers Discuss Gas Supply Projects

Alexandroupolis, Greece, September 7 (BTA) - Bulgaria, Greece and Serbia will deepen their cooperation on projects ensuring the security of gas supplies to Southeast Europe. This was agreed by the energy ministers of three Balkan countries: Temenouzhka Petkova of Bulgaria, Giorgos Stathakis of Greece, and Alexander Antic of Serbia.

They conferred within the framework of the 1st Oil & Gas Forum of the American-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce, organized in cooperation with the Hellenic Association for Energy Economics, the Bulgarian Energy Ministry said.

The sides agreed that the diversification of gas supplies will make it possible to have competitive prices and meet the challenges in the region.

Petkova underscored the strategic importance of the Greece-Bulgaria interconnector for ensuring natural gas supplies from various sources. "The Bulgarian government firmly supports the project and is negotiating extra funding with the European Commission," she said.

According to Stathakis, additional funding for the interconnector should come from both Bulgarian and Greek EU financing.

The sides also discussed the progress made on several projects: the Vertical Gas Corridor, the liquefied gas terminal at Alexandroupolis and the Bulgaria-Serbia interconnector. "These projects are fundamental to setting the new routes for gas supplies in the region. Bulgaria, Greece and Serbia will be a determining factor in forming a free and transparent gas market in the Balkans," Petkova said.

She expressed confidence that Greece and Serbia will play an important role in the development of Europe's Balkan Gas Hub. First and foremost, if the concept of the Bulgarian government is to be implemented, the infrastructure should be built with Bulgaria's neighbours and gas supplies from at least three different sources should be available. The creation of a single regional energy market will meet the three countries' priorities for security of deliveries and affordable prices for consumers, Petkova said.