Bajatovic: Srbijagas Proposes Construction of New Gas Pipeline from Nis to Horgos, Investor Needed

Serbia is considering the possibility of the construction of a new gas pipeline from Nis to Horgos, which would enable us to considerably increase the capacity and become a big transit country.

The foundations for it are already set. The works on the construction of the interconnection between Serbia and Bulgaria are being finalized, and everything is expected to be completed by the end of October. This gas pipeline will enable for Serbia additional supply routes for gas, from Azerbaijan through TAP and TANAP, and from the Greek liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals Alexandroupolis and Revithoussa. The energy source will arrive to our country through the interconnection between Bulgaria and Greece, which is already built, and then through the gas pipeline between Bulgaria and Serbia. Our country also plans to connect with North Macedonia in terms of gas supply. The economic development of Serbia will continue increasing the consumption of gas.

All this has led to the need to increase the capacities of the gas pipeline in our country. The CEO of Srbijagas, Dusan Bajatovic, says in an interview for the Novosti daily that the company’s proposition is for an entirely new gas pipeline to be built between Nis and Horgos.

– Due to the degree of development of the Hungarian transport system, that project would enable the establishing of a two-way gas pipeline of a high capacity from Baumgarten in Austria, which is the biggest gas hub in Europe, and on the other side, to Greece and Turkey – Bajatovic points out.

– The capacity of that gas pipeline could be additionally expanded by compressor stations and on transport routes toward the north and the south. Plus we have the Balkan Stream with the existing contract we have.

He says that it has not yet been decided to enter this project, because it is a big investment. However, a plan is being made, so the Ministry of Construction recently adopted the decision to prepare the environmental impact assessment for the construction of the two-way main gas pipeline Nis-Batajnica-Horgos. As Bajatovic says, an investor needs to be found.

– With this project, we lean on the South Gas Corridor that Europe has designed – Bajatovic points out.

– It should be kept in mind that Azerbaijan will increase its supply to Europe. From 2026, it will no longer be 18 billion cubic meters as now, but 36 billion cubic meters. With the construction of the new gas pipeline from Nis to Horgos, we would become a big transit country.

He says that, when the interconnection between Serbia and Bulgaria is completed in October, technically, it will be possible to deliver 2.5 million cubic meters of gas a day by that pipeline. The minister of energy of Serbia, Dubravka Djedovic, pointed out during her recent visit to the site where the gas pipeline is being built that the project is strategically important in the gas sector and Serbia’s energy system, because it will secure an additional route and a greater security of supply.

The contractors informed the minister that 100% of the pipes needed for the construction of the interconnection have been delivered so far and that 70% have been laid down and that 45% of the aboveground structures have been built. The majority of the works on the electrical installations remains to be done.

– I expect the contractors and all the participants in the project to be maximally efficient, because we are in the final phase of the works, so that, this autumn, we would completely finish the interconnection by which we will connect with new suppliers and sources of gas which come primarily from Azerbaijan – the minister said.

– The works on the section in Serbia are harmonized with the works in the territory of Bulgaria. In the future, this direction will be even more important, due to the diversification of the sources of gas supply in all of Europe and the possibility to buy from various suppliers. With this interconnection, Serbia is getting bigger energy security, and it will also have the role of a transit country for the region, as in the case of the Balkan Stream gas pipeline.

Ministarstvo građevinarstva, saobraćaja i infrastrukture Republike Srbije

Ministarstvo rudarstva i energetike Republike Srbije

JP Srbijagas Novi Sad

Ministry of Construction Transport and Infrastructure

Ministry of Mining and Energy

Srbijagas

Dusan Bajatovic

Dubravka Djedovic

Baumgarten Austria

Horgos

construction of gas pipeline from Nis to Horgos

Nis Horgos gas pipeline

construction of interconnection between Serbia and Bulgaria

TAP

TANAP

Balkan Stream

Nis Batajnica Horgos gas pipeline