The establishment of greater energy trade between Turkey and Bulgaria will create opportunities for better interconnectivity in the energy sector and supply security, Bulgaria's Deputy Minister of Energy told Anadolu Agency (AA) on Tuesday.
During Bulgaria's Ankara Embassy's roundtable discussion entitled Energy Security and Regional Cooperation at the Hilton Hotel in Ankara, Bulgarian Deputy Minister of Energy Zhecho Stankov, Deputy Undersecretary of the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar, Bulgaria's Ankara envoy Nadezhda Neynsky, Deputy CEO of Bulgartransgaz Kamen Manev, QHSSE Director at TANAP Natural Gas Transmission Company Fatih Erdem and Energy Market Regulatory Authority GAS Group Chair Bagdagul Kaya Caner attended.
Speaking exclusively to AA, Stankov said that currently, energy flows between Bulgaria and Turkey are ramping up with traders, producers and consumers looking for the most economical prices in the marketplace.
'We are seeing the establishment of energy exchange in Bulgaria, and with opportunities for better interconnectivity in the energy sector between Bulgaria and Turkey, we are seeing that energy flows are increasing with time, which is helping both countries,' he said.
Stankov explained that the meeting came under the auspices of Bulgaria's six-month presidency of the EU Council. Bulgaria took over the rotating presidency of the European Union Council from Estonia at the beginning of the year.
Under the motto, United We Stand Strong, Bulgaria will focus on four key areas:
- The future of Europe and young people
- The Western Balkans
- Security and stability
- The digital economy
The presidency will also work on connecting the Western Balkans to the EU by focusing on roads, railways, communications and energy. However, Stankov said that greater connections would not be limited to just EU member states.
'We will involve not just member states in our presidency, but also Turkey, Azerbaijan and the Western Balkans, which were invited last week to the high-level conferences in Sofia,' he said.
Underlining the good communication between the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Berat Albayrak and the Bulgarian Energy Minister Temenuzhka Petkova, Stankov noted that he is also thankful to his colleague Deputy Undersecretary of the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources Alparslan Bayraktar for personally participating and speaking on crucial energy security issues and security of supply for the whole region.
'We used the opportunity to speak about projects like the Trans Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline Project (TANAP), which is a very important part of the Southern Gas Corridor, and crucial for the security of supply of the whole region. We spoke about the interconnections Bulgaria-Turkey, Bulgaria-Greece, which are extending the Southern Gas Corridor and on opportunities to bring gas to the heart of Europe,' he explained.
TANAP, with around $8.5 billion of investment, will deliver 6 billion cubic meters of Azeri gas to Turkey and 10 billion cubic meters to Europe.
Bulgaria's natural gas distributor Bulgartransgaz and Turkey's state-owned crude oil and natural gas pipelines and trading company BOTAS are working to realize a joint Turkey-Bulgaria Gas Interconnection Project 'ITB', in which Bulgartransgaz has prepared a feasibility study for the Bulgarian territory co-funded by the EU under the CEF mechanism (Connecting Europe Facility).
The Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB) gas pipeline project will provide a direct link between the national natural gas systems of Greece and Bulgaria with an entry point in the vicinity of Komotini in northeastern Greece and an exit point in the vicinity of Stara Zagora in southern Bulgaria.
'The communication between BOTAS and Bulgartransgaz is very good. Interconnection with Greece is developing well. We already started the tender process for pipelines and for engineers,' he said.
Stankov said that based on the United We Stand Strong motto, the country will avail of opportunities to have more connectivity and to establish better regional cooperation.
The country already has an existing interconnection with Romania, and is considering progressing this interconnection with Serbia, he said.
'Only united can we solve all the issues in front of us for the future, not only in the gas sector but in the energy sector overall,' he argued.
The Bulgarian ambassador to Turkey Nadezhda Neynsky also said that Bulgaria attaches great importance to the development of relations in the energy sector in the region and sees great potential for further collaboration.
'After the visit of the Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov in Turkey in the summer of 2017, both sides agreed to intensify their cooperation in the field of gas and electricity,' she said.
In this regard, Neynsky noted that gas operators, Bulgartransgaz and BOTAS as well as electricity operators ESO and TEIAS have established dialogue on a technical level.
'Considering this, the efforts of both parties will be directed to fully exploiting the significant transfer capacity of the existing interconnections between the two countries,' she asserted.
The Bulgarian ambassador confirmed that Bulgaria is paying particular attention to the ITB project.
'ITB can provide access to all current and future entry points and sources in Turkey - gas from Azerbaijan and other natural gas as well as LNG spot supplies from existing terminals in Turkey,' she declared.
Underlining Turkey's close geographical proximity to more than 70 percent of the world's energy reserves, Neynsky highlighted the country's important role for energy security in the region, which she said would be further strengthened by the projects currently under development in Turkey.
'Enhancing our cooperation for ensuring regional stability through energy independence and connectivity is one of the main goals of the Bulgarian Presidency,' she concluded.
By Ebru Sengul
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr