Thewesternbalkans
Minister of Mining and Energy of Serbia Dubravka Đedović Handanović and Minister of Energy of Romania Sebastian Burduja signed on August 5 a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the construction of a natural gas interconnector.
The strategic project will connect the natural gas transmission system in Serbia, through the Mokrin technological node, with the BRUA (Bulgaria-Romania-Hungary-Austria) gas transportation pipeline in Romanian town of Recas.
They agreed for the capacity to be at least 1.6 billion cubic meters a year. The two-way gas pipeline would be 13 kilometers long in Serbia and 86 kilometers in Romania (the border between Romania and Serbia – Comlosu Mare, Timis County). The Serbian section will be completed by 2027, the ministry said in a statement.
Romania’s energy ministry said in a separate statement the two sides plan to start works on the pipeline next year and complete the project in 2028.
In the National Transmission System Development Plan for the 2024-2033 period, Romanian gas transmission system operator Transgaz said the estimated value of the project is 86.8 million euro. Serbia’s energy minister Dubravka Đedović Handanović stated the value of the investment on Serbian side is about 12 million euro.
Comment: Serbia and Romania are strengthening energy cooperation which is essential in a context of overlapping security, geopolitical, climate and economic crises.
Тhis cooperation will enable both countries to achieve some of their most important strategic and economic goals. On the one hand, Serbia tries to become an indispensable transit country and an important partner in ensuring the energy security of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe when it comes to gas supply.
On the other hand, Romania wants lead role in EU in gas production. In Q1 2024 the country provided almost 30% of the gas production of the entire EU.
