By Azernews

Bulgarian Prime Minister Kirill Petkov has said that natural gas from Azerbaijan will start coming in June, regardless of whether the agreement with Greece is ready or not, Azernews reports.

In an interview with Nova TV channel, the prime minister stated that natural gas in May is 15 percent more expensive, and in June the cost will be at the level of April.

Petkov added that the natural gas coordinated with an American company is on its way.

Moreover, Bulgarian former Economics and Energy Minister Traycho Traykov stated that gas from Azerbaijan is an excellent option for Bulgaria, adding that the only thing that is left is to increase the volume of supplies. 

"I don't think there is a gas crisis, because there is gas. There has been a problem with prices for almost a year, and the most promising option for Bulgaria is to increase the volume of natural gas from Azerbaijan," he said.

Noting that the rest of the gas needed by the country has to be compensated in other ways, the former minister mentioned that one of them is deliveries of natural gas from the US.

Azerbaijan and Bulgaria agreed to supply 1 billion cubic meters of gas per year through the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria starting in 2021.

However, because the interconnector is still under construction, Azerbaijani gas is delivered to Bulgaria via the Kulata-Sidirokastro interconnection point. Currently, the country receives only one-third of the agreed volume.

Earlier, it was reported that the IGB will be commissioned in late June 2022 and the pumping of Azerbaijani gas through it will start in September.

The IGB project is being carried out by the joint venture company ICGB AD, established in Bulgaria in 2011 and owned by Bulgarian Energy Holding EAD and IGI Poseidon.

The IGB gas pipeline will connect to the Greek national gas transmission system in Komotini and the Bulgarian national gas transmission system in Stara Zagora. The pipeline's planned length is 182 kilometers, with a capacity of up to 3 billion cubic meters per year in the direction from Greece to Bulgaria. The pipeline is designed to increase its capacity up to 5 bcm/y depending on market interest and the capacities of neighboring gas transmission systems.