After the visit to the construction site of Bulgaria-Greece gas interconnection, Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov said that this is a geostrategic project for both Bulgaria and the entire region. He admitted that the pandemic had slowed it down a bit but, as agreed with Greek partners, it must be put into commercial operation in 2021. Minister of Energy Temenuzhka Petkova said that the pipes production and delivery contract has been performed. So far, 187 kilometers of pipes have been delivered in both countries, the topsoil has been stripped off on over 170 kilometers of the pipeline route in Bulgaria, more than 128 kilometers of the pipes delivered are on site, and over 101 kilometers have been welded. Work continues on digging the trench, laying the pipes and backfilling. 182 kilometers long Bulgaria-Greece gas interconnection is designed with the capacity between 3 and 5 billion cubic meters of gas per year, but it could be extended up to 10 billion cubic meters in case of commercial interest and economical justification. It runs from Komotini (Northeastern Greece) via Kurdjali, Haskovo and Dimitrovgrad to Stara Zagora (Southeastern Bulgaria). The construction of gas interconnection officially started on 22 May 2019.
