The opening of the “Turkish Stream” branch through Serbia at the end of December means that the state will no longer depend on the supply of Russian gas through Ukraine and that it will become a new hub in the region, said the editor of the “Energy of the Balkans” portal Jelica Putnikovic.
Commenting on the announcement by the President of Serbia that Russian gas would arrive in Serbia via Bulgaria on the eve of the New Year, Putnikovic said that it was encouraging that this project had reached its goal, because Serbia, above all, now has an alternative supply route.
Gas from Serbia is already going to Bosnia and Herzegovina, ie the Republika Srpska, but within the framework of this project for the construction of the “Turkish Stream” gas pipeline through Serbia, the construction of one branch towards BiH is also planned. The world is turning away from producing electricity from coal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and moving to renewable energy, but they cannot supply consumers in full 24 hours a day capacity,” explains Putnikovic for Sputnik.
We are also helped by the fact that gas has become cheaper, so it is no longer an energy source that is too expensive to produce electricity, and all that remains is for gas to reach every house, she notes.
Putnikovic adds that Serbia, unfortunately, is not fully gasified, except in Vojvodina, where the gas network is extremely branched. A good part of smaller cities still do not have gas, because local gas pipelines have not been built, but this has also been considered.
Putnikovic pointed out that it was good that the action started last year, the construction of a gas pipeline was announced, that is, the gasification of the whole of Serbia.
The gasification of households has also started, it is a good thing that those who want to bring natural gas into their homes can now pay for that connection in installments with the account of “Srbijagas”.
The President of Serbia announced that Russian gas from “Turkish Stream” will be released into Serbia on December 29 or 30, and Putnikovic says that we will have gas that is cheaper than the one that is presented in the political statements of some European and especially American officials as an alternative to Russian gas.
“President Vucic said yesterday that no one would force Serbia to buy more expensive gas, because Russian gas is reliable, it reaches us, it arrived during the 1990s, and it is cheaper than the gas that now reaches the NNG terminal,” he said. Putnikovic said, adding that Serbia will also have the opportunity to connect via Greece and Bulgaria to some of those terminals in gas ports, when the connection is completed, which is also a good alternative.
“Some more gas pipelines are being built in the Balkans, which will enable Serbia, connecting to the gas systems of Bulgaria and Hungary, to have new supply routes, but this is the most important thing now, because we no longer depend on one supply route through Ukraine and Hungary,” Putnikovic said, Sputnik News reports.
