Since certain political forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) insist on the Southern and Eastern Interconnection projects, there are several political and technical questions to which no one has offered an answer to the public.
Although some politicians say that the Eastern Interconnection project is important because it also diversifies the gas supply, that project only passes through the Republika Srpska (RS), and at no point is it connected to the rest of the BiH gas system.
“The supply of the Canton Sarajevo (CS) and the Zenica-Doboj Canton (ZDC) is planned exclusively through the implementation of the BiH-Croatia Southern Interconnection project, which increases the security of supply by diversifying routes, as well as access to new sources of gas from LNG Krk, and in the future also gas from the Caspian region through the realization of the Ionian-Adriatic gas pipeline,” BH Gas stated.
“The fact is that the New Eastern Interconnection passes through the northern part of BiH, completely through the RS entity, and the connection of this interconnection with the transport system in the Federation of BiH (FBiH) is not foreseen, and in addition, the realization of this interconnection does not enable the diversification of sources and the increase of security of supply,” BH Gas added.
In the case of the Southern Interconnection, there are requests from the HDZ to reform BH Gas together with other companies from the energy field and to establish another company.
“BH-Gas has already been reformed into the only operator of the transport system in the FBiH, and the supply is now entirely assigned to the Energoinvest company. Further transformation of the BH Gas company within the FBiH is no longer possible except for the formation of a public transport corporation for gas at the state level of BiH. On the other hand, it is known that certain deputies in the House of People of the Parliament of the FBiH requested that BH Gas be deleted from the text of the Law on the South Interconnection BiH-Croatia gas pipeline, even though it is the same holder of this project, and that BH-Gas be replaced by a newly founded company South gas interconnection d.o.o. Mostar”, they emphasize.
Such a thing is not in accordance with positive legal regulations in the FBiH.
They explained that Croatia has only one operator of the transport system, unlike BiH, where 3 operators have been determined, 1 in the FBiH and 2 in the RS and that they are now insisting on the introduction of another operator in the FBiH.
On the other hand, the annual consumption of natural gas in Croatia is around 3 billion m3, while in BiH it is around 250 million m3.
“We remind you that the basic prerequisite for ensuring the security of natural gas supply, and ultimately the energy security of a country, is the legally regulated activity of natural gas transportation, given that the realization of such an interconnection project requires large investments, and later the obligation of constant maintenance. In this regard, further fragmentation of the natural gas transport activity in the FBiH is not justified, especially considering the fact that, in accordance with long-term experience with technical, personnel, and material resources, the company BH Gas is fully qualified to continue the implementation of the South Interconnection gas pipeline project of BiH and Croatia for the benefit of the gas industry in both the FBiH and BiH,” BH Gas concluded, Klix.ba reports.
E.Dz.
