site.btaSix Companies with Bids for Capacity of Future Greece-Bulgaria Gas Interconnector

Six Companies with Bids for Capacity of Future Greece-Bulgaria Gas Interconnector

Sofia, April 1 (BTA) - Energy Minister Temenouzhka Petkova Friday told journalists in Parliament that six bids have been received thus far for capacity from the future Greece-Bulgaria gas interconnector. The first phase of the interconnector's market test has been concluded, where the potential participants place non-binding, indicative bids for the quantities they wish to reserve as capacity, she noted. The capacity auction has not been launched yet and a public procurement procedure will be conducted, the Energy Minister specified.

Given the bids already placed, the gas interconnector's capacity is full and even exceeded, she went on to say, adding that the initial capacity is from 3 to 5 billion m3. The Bulgarian and the Greek regulator will extend the deadline of this first phase by several days, Petkova noted. The second phase, which is related to the placement of binding bids, should be concluded by mid-2016.

"The Greece-Bulgaria gas inteconnector is a very important project, it is strategically linked to the security of gas supplies. It is also extremely important in view of the market's development," Petkova said.

According to the Mediapool e-zine, the companies which have placed non-binding bids are: Bulgargaz, which has a contract for the import of 1 billion m3 from the Shah Deniz II gas field in Azerbaijan as of 2019; Greece's DEPA; Italy's Edison; Azerbaijan's SOCAR; the US' Noble; and Greece's Gastrage.