Bulgaria welcomes Greek LNG terminal decision for diversification of supply – EURACTIV.com

The company in charge of building the Greece-Bulgaria gas interconnector hailed on Tuesday (1 February) the final investment decision on developing a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal off the Greek city of Alexandroupolis as a major chance for increasing the capacity of the gas link between the two Balkan countries.

The 182-km long IGB Project (Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria) will link Stara Zagora in Bulgaria and Komotini in Greece.

ICGB AD, the Bulgaria-registered Greek-Bulgarian company in charge of building the IGB project, said the LNG terminal is of great importance for the commercial activities of the IGB pipeline as it will create significantly more opportunities for gas transmission through IGB.

The final investment decision (FID)for the construction of the Independent Natural Gas System (INGS) of Alexandroupolis was taken on 27 January by the shareholders of Greece’s Gastrade SA. The FID is the last and most important milestone before entering the project’s construction phase.

According to Gastrade, the construction and operation of the Alexandroupolis LNG terminal will contribute to the energy security, liquidity and diversification of the country and entire Southeastern Europe, strengthening the strategic role of Greece and offering alternative sources and routes for the supply of natural gas in the area.

A Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU), with an annual capacity of around five billion cubic meters of gas, will be connected to the gas transmission system of Greece with a 28 km long pipeline, through which the gasified LNG will be transmitted to the markets of Greece, Bulgaria and the wider region, from Romania, Serbia, and North Macedonia all the way to Moldova and Ukraine.

The terminal is expected to be operational by the end of 2023, with the contracted regasification capacity already reaching up to 50% of its technical capacity of 5.5 bcm per year.