Energoinvest, gas supplier for BH entity of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, signed yesterday an annex on the extension of the contract for the supply of natural gas with the Russian supplier Gazprom.
“By signing this annex, the basic contract was signed in the usual way, which means that the price for the delivered gas will be adjusted as before, quarterly, exclusively on the basis of a nine-month change in the price of petroleum products,” Energoinvest said in a statement.
It is added that the signing of this annex enables further uninterrupted supply of natural gas to the FBiH until January 1, 2023, when it is planned to sign a new annex to the contract and continue the delivery of natural gas.
Two companies that supply the citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina with natural gas told BHRT that they currently do not have any data on changes in the quantities of this energy source for Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Namely, Russia has suspended the delivery of gas to Poland and Bulgaria, Gazprom confirmed. The Prime Minister of Bulgaria, Kiril Petkov, stated that Russia’s decision represents blackmail and that Sofia is considering all agreements with Gazprom, including transit for Serbia and Hungary.
This could be a problem for Bosnia and Herzegovina, because we do not have a “B” plan. Our country is supplied with gas only by the “Turkish Stream” through Bulgaria and Serbia. However, the Embassies of the Russian Federation say that they do not have information regarding possible problems in the supply of Bosnia and Herzegovina with Russian gas.
Energoinvest told BHRT that as an importer of gas for FBiH, it confirms that Gazprom Export has not received any announcements or information indicating the possibility of suspending gas supplies to FBiH. According to all available data and measurements from 9 am this morning (April 27, 2022), gas is flowing unhindered in the FBiH, in the agreed quantities and dynamics, which was confirmed to us by Gazprom Export.
Regarding the issue of payment for gas in rubles, our company has not received any request from Gazprom Export regarding payments in Russian currency. From March 2022, gas will be paid in euros.
“It is important to note that Bulgaria is supplied with Russian gas via Romania, Moldova and Ukraine, not only through the Turkish Stream. The Turkish Stream section passing through Bulgaria is part of the transit route through which gas is delivered to Serbia, Hungary, BiH, part of Austria and “Although Bulgaria would give up Russian gas, it is unlikely that it would disable the transit route that supplies gas to the above-mentioned countries. After all, Ukraine is at war, and all transit routes for transporting gas to Europe through Ukraine still function today.”
In case of any possible changes, Energoinvest will inform the public in a timely manner.
The company GAS-REs, which supplies gas to Republika Srpska, also told us that there was no official information from suppliers about changes in energy prices.
Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is interested in various energy sources, including gas from the liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal in Alexandroupolis in northern Greece, whose construction began on May 3rd.
This was mentioned for Radio Free Europe (RFE) by the entity ministries of energy, as well as in companies that import gas in BiH.
The terminal in Greece should start operating in 2023, and gas will be delivered there mainly from Azerbaijan and the United States (U.S.).
In order for that gas to reach the users in BiH, it is necessary, among other things, to complete the construction of the gas interconnection between Serbia and Bulgaria, which began in February, said the company “Gas Res”, which imports this energy source in BiH entity Republika Srpska (RS).
“In order to use gas from that area, it is necessary to fulfill a number of preconditions. The construction of the Nis-Dimitrovgrad gas pipeline has begun in the length of some 100 and a few kilometers, then it should be connected from Dimitrovgrad to Sofia, that terminal should be built… in the foreseeable future that gas will not be available to RS, “ told Ljubo Glamocic, director of Gas Res.
From “Energoinvest”, a company that supplies gas to other BiH entity, the Federation of BiH (FBiH), pointedout that a new terminal is an important event for the entire region, including BiH.
“After the construction of this terminal, which is planned for the end of 2023 with a capacity of 5.5 billion cubic meters of gas, this may be one of the additional supply options for FBiH in the future. We are in contact with representatives of the European Union (EU) Energy Community on this topic, ” they say in” Energoinvest”.
For now, BiH is completely dependent on imported gas from Russia, which arrives in the country through the so-called Turk stream, and it enters the country only at one point, at the entrance terminal in Sepak near Zvornik, on the border between BiH and Serbia.
Regarding the plan of gas diversification in the Federation of BiH, the Southern Interconnection has long been mentioned, which would connect BiH with the gas pipeline system in the south of Croatia – but also the LNG terminal on the island of Krk, in the north of the Adriatic Sea.
RS is working on the “New Eastern Interconnection”, the gas connection between RS and Serbia, and the representatives of the companies “Srbijagas” and “Gas Res” signed the agreement on gasification on March 16 last year.
In 2022, natural gas from other countries, including the U.S., could replace about 60 billion cubic meters of Russian gas, the European Commission announced earlier, RSE writes.
E.Dz.
