There is no substitute for Russian gas in Serbia or Europe. The US administration is using the Ukrainian crisis in an attempt to get its suppliers to take over the Old Continent market from Russia.
That is how our country received a new-old request from the USA to give up Russian blue fuel and turn to American liquefied natural gas (LNG) and renewable energy sources.
The International Energy Agency, world experts and energy companies warn that there are not enough reserves of blue fuel on the planet that could compensate for any shortage of Russian gas on the European market. Apart from the fact that LNG is in small quantities and is extremely expensive, when it comes to Serbia, there is no infrastructure with which it could be transported to our country. By building the “Balkan Stream”, whose capacity is 15.75 billion cubic meters per year, and the agreement with the Russian president on a more favorable gas price, our country has ensured a secure supply for citizens and the economy.
The president of the Gas Association of Serbia, Vojislav Vuletić, estimates that in the next 15 years, there will be no other blue fuel on the market for us, except Russian. Energy expert Milos Zdravkovic also points out that there is no possibility of Serbia receiving gas from any other source. Some circles in our country, especially the Minister of Energy Zorana Mihajlović, are forcing the importance of the interconnector between Serbia and Bulgaria, which is being built with the support of the EU and the European Investment Bank. Brussels and Washington are pushing for this project because of their geopolitical interests. Apart from the fact that this gas pipeline has a modest capacity, 1.8 billion cubic meters, there is no built infrastructure with which it should be connected on the route through Bulgaria and Greece in order to reach us at all. Also, there is no gas that could reach Serbia via that route.
In early February, during a video address to the participants in the Ministerial Meeting of the Advisory Council of the Southern Gas Corridor in Baku, the Minister reiterated that when part of the interconnector on the Serbian side, from Nis to Dimitrovgrad, is operational in 2023, our country will be ready to connect with others. pipelines and suppliers. According to her, possibilities are being opened for supplying Serbia with natural gas from Azerbaijan, from the gas pipeline on the Southern Gas Corridor, as well as LNG terminals in Greece, or those that could be a source of gas for our region, such as the Eastern Mediterranean.
As Zdravković points out, our country is building the 109-kilometer Nis-Dimitrovgrad pipeline, and it will spend part of the money on that, and there is no gas, as well as the necessary infrastructure.
– On the other hand, there is no gas pipeline from the Bulgarian border to Sofia, as well as the interconnector between Bulgaria and Greece – Zdravković explains.
– That has not started to be built, as well as the gas floating terminal in the Greek port of Alexandroupolis. I doubt that project, as it turned out to be a failure and the gas terminal on Krk in Croatia.
He states that there is not enough LNG, and it cannot compete with prices. American companies are limited, they cannot export large quantities. The next option that is mentioned as a possibility in the future is the blue energy source from the Mediterranean gas pipeline “Eastmed”, and the agreement on its construction was signed two years ago by Israel, Greece and Cyprus. Like other experts, Zdravkovic is skeptical about this project, Novosti writes.
