BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Commercial launch of the interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB) will guarantee secure supplies of natural gas from various sources not only for Bulgaria and Greece, but also for the entire region of South-Eastern Europe, said the Executive Officer of project ICGB AD from the Bulgarian side Teodora Georgieva, Trend reports with reference to the company.
She made the remarks during the inauguration of IGB.
"We have the opportunity to supply gas to the Western Balkans, to ensure supplies to Moldova and Ukraine. Today we mark together the completion of a key stage in the development of the energy system in the region taking a big step forward towards a stronger, more connected and independent Europe. The end of the construction of IGB comes after a number of challenges and obstacles that we were able to overcome only thanks to the consistent efforts of the ICGB team, the company's shareholders, the political will of the governments of Bulgaria and Greece and the unequivocal support of the EC", Georgieva added.
The IGB project is of key importance for increasing security of supply and for ensuring diversification of natural gas sources for Bulgaria and the region of Southeast Europe. At the regional level, IGB will provide access to the gas transmission network for Bulgarian municipalities and regions that didn’t have an option for connectivity. The interconnector with Greece is an entirely new route for the transmission of natural gas to Europe and will give Bulgaria and the region access to supplies from new sources. The project will connect the country with the Southern Gas Corridor and has excellent synergy with other major energy projects such as TAP, TANAP, EastMed and the LNG terminal at Alexandroupolis.