Over 12.7 million Mwh have been transported through the IGB pipeline since its commissioning
For the first half of 2023, over 7.8 million Mwh were transferred through the interconnector; 80% of the capacity for the next gas year has been successfully booked
Source: ICGB
A total of 12.7 Mwh are the quantities of natural gas transported through the IGB pipeline from the introduction of the interconnector into commercial operation on 1 October 2022 until the end of June 2023. The IGB connects directly to the Trans-Adriatic Gas Pipeline (TAP), making Bulgaria part of The Southern Gas Corridor and enables access to secure supplies of natural gas from diversified sources for both the country and the wider region.
"For the first 6 months of 2023 alone, the transported quantities totaled 7.8 million Mwh. This equates to 669 million normal cubic meters," ICGB Executive Directors Teodora Georgieva and George Satlas announced. According to them, currently the interconnector, which connects the transmission networks of Greece and Bulgaria, has a total of 22 registered users.
Currently, the gas pipeline operates with a total capacity of 3 billion cubic meters per year. 1.57 billion m3/y have already been reserved under long-term contracts lasting up to 25 years. The remaining capacity is auctioned for different periods on the two European platforms PRISMA and RBP. At the beginning of June, the tenders for annual capacity were successfully completed, and with this, 80% of the total capacity of the IGB for the next gas year (2023-2024) has already been reserved.
Recently, the independent transmission operator ICGB, responsible for the commercial operation of the pipeline, launched an additional capacity procedure to explore market interest in increasing the interconnection capacity to 5 bcm/y. "In close cooperation with the other operators in the region and considering the interconnector's synergy with other projects such as the Alexandroupolis LNG Terminal and the Trans-Balkan Gas Pipeline, we are actively working on the IGB's further development plan, strengthening its strategic role in the Southeast Europe region," noted Georgieva and Satlas.
The IGB gas pipeline creates an entirely new route through Bulgaria for transporting natural gas from new sources to a number of countries, including Moldova and Ukraine.