IGB welcomed by EU Vice-President
By Fatma Babayeva
The Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB, also known as Stara Zagora-Komotini pipeline), that will be linked to the Southern Gas Corridor, will be commercially viable according to the latest data, and its construction can begin very soon.
Vice-President of the European Commission for Energy Union Maros Sefcovic announced about this in EBRD-filmed interview.
The SGC is very important project, and it is implemented in accordance with the schedule, said Sefcovic, reminding that the transportation of the Caspian gas to Turkey is expected by 2019, to Europe by 2020.
Bulgaria and Greece signed a final investment decision on the IGB project in December, 2015.
Worth noting, the IGB will be connected to the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) which is part of the Southern Gas Corridor- one of the priority energy projects for the EU.
TAP and the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria Company – which is in charge of the development, financing, and construction of the IGB – signed a memorandum of understanding and cooperation in January 2014.
The interconnector will allow Bulgaria to receive Azerbaijan’s gas, mainly from Shah Deniz 2 gas and condensate field.
Within the framework of the SGC project, the existing pipeline infrastructures will be upgraded and a chain of new pipelines will be developed.
South Caucasus pipeline, Trans-Anatolian and Trans-Adriatic pipelines are the components of this giant pipeline network. It will stretch across Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Greece and southern part of the Italy.
Upon realization, the IGC will be a continuation of the Southern Gas Corridor into Europe.
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Fatma Babayeva is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Fatma_Babayeva
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