BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 1. The Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria was a turning point, as it provided access to the LNG terminal, as well as to the Southern Gas Corridor, which supplies natural gas from Azerbaijan to Bulgaria, said the country’s Deputy Minister of Energy Iva Petrova, TurkicWorld reports.

She pointed out that another significant undertaking is the Alexandroupolis terminal, in which Bulgartransgaz, a Bulgarian company, holds a stake.

"Our objective is to ensure its full functionality by year-end. Bulgargaz has already secured a capacity of 1 billion cubic meters at the terminal. Additionally, we are actively engaged in establishing gas connections with Serbia and North Macedonia, while also focusing on expanding the storage capacity in Chiren," noted Petrova during a meeting of the ministry team at the US embassy in Bulgaria.

Moreover, the deputy minister said that her country actively participates in the European Commission's platform for common gas supplies.

"These endeavors have yielded positive outcomes, providing enhanced supply security and diversification for both Bulgaria and the wider Southeast Europe region," she noted.

Bulgaria started importing gas from Azerbaijan via the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB) which was put into operation on October 1, 2022. The contracted volume of gas supplies via this interconnector is 1 billion cubic meters per year. The total capacity of IGB is 3 billion cubic meters, expandable to 5 billion cubic meters per year.

Azerbaijan exports gas to Europe via the Trans Adriatic Pipeline, the final leg of the Southern Gas Corridor. The initial capacity of TAP is 10 billion cubic meters expandable to 20 billion cubic meters per year.