Home > novice > expert commentary > bulgarias gas connections with romania and greece financed i

Bulgaria’s gas connections with Romania and Greece financed in 2010

Date: March 8^th 2010 Author: Anastasiya Georgieva Aleksandrova, Sofia Category: Articles
Topic: Electricity , Natural gas , RES and EE , Economy

Energy projects with Bulgaria’s participation will receive close to 54 million Euros of European funds, according to European Commission’s estimations regarding projects to be financed in 2010. The financing in question will be provided from the Fund for Economical Recovery of EU, the total value of which amounts to five billion Euros. The fund was created last year with the purpose to finance energy projects and projects for broadband Internet which otherwise would remain unfunded during the crisis.

With the granted funds, two projects for gas connections between Bulgaria and Greece and Romania will be financed. First, 45 million Euros will be allocated for the connection between Bulgaria and Greece on the route Stara Zagora – Dimitrovgrad – Komotini which is being developed by Greece Public Gas Corporation DEPA, Bulgarian Energy Holding (BEH) and Edison company.

PHOTO: archive Energetika.NET

The connection between Bulgaria and Romania, executed by Romanian Transgas and Bulgarian Bulgargas will be additionally granted nine million Euros. In addition, another project with Bulgaria’s participation will be partially financed, but it is not yet clear what type. The Nabucco gas pipeline project is to receive 200 million Euros.

Overall amount for the whole EU is 910 million Euros which will be used to fund 12 electricity projects and 1.39 billion Euros which will back 31 gas transmission projects. In December 2009, one billion Euros were allocated for pioneer projects for capture of greenhouse emissions and their storage underground and another 565 million Euros for off-shore wind parks.

Bulgarian Ministry of Economy, Energy and Tourism announced that Minister Traicho Traikov would sign a protocol on the establishment of a company which would develop, construct and exploit gas interconnection between Bulgaria and Greece. The connection will provide the participation of the country in the second priority European gas project i.e. the corridor Turkey – Greece – Italy which is part of the South gas corridor. The companies BEH and IGI Poseidon will share equal participation in the joint venture.

Signing of the contract will take place during the two day conference dubbed “Energy in Southeast Europe – production of renewable energy and security of energy supply” which is held on March 4 and 5 in Thessaloniki and which Minister Traikov is attending. The emphasis in the conference talks will be EU renewable energies policy and the preparation of Bulgaria’s National Plan based on latest development in RES and quantities of energy produced.

PHOTO: © European Communities, 2009

Minister Traikov will take part in the minister dialogue dubbed “Priority energy investments in SEE” where he will talk about the country’s energy policy by 2020 and important projects with Bulgaria’s participation.

top