Greek Parliament okays IGB construction

Greece's Parliament ratified a bill authorizing the Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB) natural gas pipeline and ratifying the foundation treaty of the EastMed Gas Forum (EMGF), Report informs, referring to Xinhua.

The bill was supported by the ruling conservative New Democracy party and two opposition parties, the Greek national news agency AMNA reported.

Bulgaria has already ratified the bilateral cooperation agreement on the IGB, enabling the linking of the Greek and Bulgarian natural gas pipeline networks.

"The IGB project is already underway. According to AMNA, it is 52 percent complete and is expected to be completed by the end of 2021," Minister of Environment and Energy Kostas Skrekas told Parliament.

"The IGB project upgrades Greece's geostrategic position as the country becomes a gateway for natural gas to the European market from diversified sources," he said.

"The new pipeline will be connected to the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), which transports natural gas from Azerbaijan to Europe via Greece, as well as with the floating storage and regasification unit offshore Alexandroupolis in northern Greece," he explained.

"The forum's goal is to ensure the security of energy supply for the wider region at competitive prices," Skrekas told the plenary.

The EastMed Gas Forum is an energy alliance among Greece, Cyprus, Egypt, Israel, Italy, Jordan, and Palestine, established as an international organization in January 2020.