Azerbaijan and Bulgaria discussed the possibility of exchanging electricity for natural gas, the Azerbaijani and Bulgarian media reported.
The issue was discussed during the meetings of the acting Minister of Economy and Industry - Nikola Stoyanov in Baku.
A meeting between the Minister of Economy and Industry of Bulgaria Nikola Stoyanov and Minister of Economy Parviz Shahbazov took place, Trend reports via Shahbazov's Twitter.
"We discussed the commercial commissioning of IGB Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria and the gas supply to Bulgaria within the expansion of the TAP Trans Adriatic Pipeline. It is predicted that approximately 600 million cm of gas will be exported to Bulgaria by the end of the year," he stated.
Bulgaria will receive 440 million cubic meters of natural gas from Azerbaijan starting from July to December 2022, announced the Ambassador of Azerbaijan to Bulgaria - H.E. Mr. Huseyn Huseynov.
The Minister of Energy of Bulgaria - Rosen Hristov had a telephone conversation with the Minister of Energy of Azerbaijan - Parviz Shahbazov. This was reported by Trend.az agency on August 31, 2022, referring to the Bulgarian Ministry of Energy.
The parties discussed the terms for starting commercial supplies of Azerbaijani gas to Bulgaria via the IGB interconnector.
The European Commission encourages all parties concerned to accelerate necessary steps to launch the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB) as soon as possible, a European Commission spokesperson told Trend, as it received a letter from Romania’s former energy minister.
Romania’s former energy minister Razvan Nicolescu has sent a letter to the EU Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson, asking to take measures to speed up the launch of the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria, which is aimed at transporting Azerbaijani gas.
The interconnector with Greece is already successfully connected to the national and transit gas transmission network, as well as to neighboring transmission operators, ensuring the physical transmission of gas. The connection of the infrastructure of the two independent transmission operators for Bulgaria - ICGB and Bulgartransgaz - was carried out near Stara Zagora in the period August 16-17. The process is completed with three gold welds.
ICGB introduces a new management model in response to the requirements to transform the project company into an independent transmission operator. After the General Meeting of Shareholders (BEH and IGI Poseidon) was held, a new Statute of the company was adopted. The changes are part of ICGB's obligations under the company's certification by the national energy regulators of Greece and Bulgaria, which was announced earlier in July.
The ICGB company, which is developing the gas interconnection project between Greece and Bulgaria, has submitted to the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works an updated proposal for the introduction of phasing of the remaining activities until the start of commercial operation of the facility.
The project company ICGB received the final joint certification decision as an independent transmission operator. It was handed to the two executive directors Teodora Georgieva and Konstantinos Karayanakos by the chairmen of the national energy regulators of Bulgaria and Greece KEVR and RAE - Stanislav Todorov and Athanasios Dagoumas.
The IGB project connects Bulgaria with the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline, allowing gas to be transported from Azerbaijan through Greece to Italy and the region of Southeast Europe.
