BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 19. Work continues for the necessary operational permit for the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB) in Greece, so that before the end of September the facility will be licensed on Greek territory as well, the ICGB AD, the project company, told Trend.
The 72-hour tests, during which natural gas is transported at working pressure in the direction from Komotini to Stara Zagora, have already been performed.
The company said that given the importance of timely commissioning of the IGB pipeline and the start of the heating season, the remaining activities as part of the project are divided into phases, with today's signing of Act 15 between ICGB, the construction company, the construction and author's supervision marking the end of the first phase of these activities.
“This phase contains all the elements that are of direct importance for the start of commercial operation of the gas pipeline. Secondary activities are identified in a separate stage that needs to be completed by the Greek company AVAX as part of their contractual obligations. All secondary activities identified under the additional phase no not directly affect the operational readiness of the facility - e.g., asphalt laying, anti-erosion measures, spare optical cable. Work on all above-mentioned activities continues, and their final implementation will be inspected by both the contracting entity and the relevant institutions and will be the subject of a separate Act,” said the ICGB AD.
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.
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