The governments of the RS and FB&H reached an agreement regarding the distribution of debt for unpaid natural gas, which Russia delivered to B&H from 1991 to 1995, thus fulfilling a prerequisite for the continuation of activities in the preparations for the construction of the pipeline “Južni tok” through the RS, as ‘Nezavisne’ unofficially found out.
This debt will be resolved in such as a way so that the debt would be ‘settled’, in the amount of 125,2 million USD.
Solving the debt between B&H and Russia is a prerequisite for forming a joint company between ‘Gas-Res’ and the Russian ‘Gazprom’ and the commencement of construction of the “Južni tok” pipeline through the RS.
When it comes to the debt for the delivered gas, the FB&H government confirmed on Friday that an agreement had been reached.
They said that they accepted the agreement on allocation of debt of 104,8 million USD and the FB&H would give 53,89 and the RS would give 50,91 million USD. They are still waiting for the RS to place this agreement on the daily agenda and accept it, in order to send it to the B&H Council of Ministers.
On Friday, journalists from ‘Nezavisne’ were not able to find out at the RS government whether this agreement is acceptable to the RS and when the agreement on allocation will be signed.
B&H is the only country in the former Yugoslavia that has not yet resolved the issue of clearing debt, acquired through trade and economic cooperation with the Russian Federation and which has to be regulated by 2016.
Slobodan Puhalac, the Director of the company ‘Gas-Res’, said that after the question of internal debt is solved, which involves the debt redistribution between the RS and FB&H for Russian gas, the next step is an agreement between the B&H Council of Ministers and the Russian Federation.
‘’After this agreement on the ‘settling’ of debts is accepted and signed, the opportunity will open to form a joint company between the RS and Gazprom’’, said Puhalac.
After the formation of a joint company, there will be a study of the technical-economic viability of the project and the production of a preliminary and final design for the “Južni tok” through the RS.
The construction of “Južni tok” in the RS is expected in September this year, and the first quantity of gas is expected to be available in 2016.
(Source: ekapija.com)
