The results of many months of energy diplomacy between Greece And Bulgaria in his area oil and his natural gas ratified today in Athens by the President of Bulgaria Rumen Radev and prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis with the signing of two interstate agreements that have been underway since October last year.

The first concerns the implementation of the Burgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline to transport oil in the opposite direction from its original project. The project was designed to transport volumes of Russian oil to the Mediterranean through the port of Alexandroupolis, bypassing the Bosphorus, and although in 2007 it was one step ahead of the start of its implementation, in 2011 it was finally canceled with the withdrawal of Bulgaria.

The idea of ​​building the project arose against the background of the energy crisis, this time bypassing the Russian factor in order to support European plans to phase out Russian fossil fuels. oil it will go in the opposite direction and from the port of Alexandroupolis it will reach the Bulgarian oil refineries in the Black Sea. Bulgaria, through this plan, takes an important step in de-dependence on Russian oil, and Greece strengthens its position on the energy map of Europe, because after the IGB operation, which since October last year transports natural gas to a neighboring country, and from there to other Balkan markets, it will also send oil to its hinterland. At the same time, the role bosphorus straits as Turkey’s geopolitical tool, retaining a voice in the transitions it influences depending on its own interests or those of Putin, who uses him in his plans as a “Trojan horse”.

A new pipeline involving a private party Copelouso Group it will have a smaller capacity, namely 10 million tons of oil per year, compared to the 35-50 million tons envisaged by the original plan. According to the Greek side, the project is mature enough to proceed immediately, since it can build on the technical studies carried out in the previous phase. The intergovernmental agreement signed today will pave the way for making an investment decision and starting the construction of the project in a very short time.

The second intergovernmental agreement, which will be signed today in Athens, concerns the storage of 0.3 terawatt-hours of natural gas in Bulgarian warehouses on behalf of Greece and, at the same time, the corresponding volumes of LNG storage in Revitus on behalf of a neighboring country.

K. Mitsotakis and R. Radev will also sign an agreement to store Greek electricity in Bulgaria and Bulgarian LNG in Revitus.

With these two agreements, Greece further strengthens its position on the northern border as a “gateway” not only for natural gas, but also for oil. At the same time, it seeks to function as a second “gate” on its southern border, using its natural position to transport gas, electricity and hydrogen from the southeastern Mediterranean to Europe.

In the electricity sector, he is involved in three electricity interconnection investment projects (two with Egypt and one with Israel), and in the natural gas sector, a new area of ​​further cooperation with Cairo is also opening up. Egypt is already one of the main LNG exporters to Greece, ranking third (4.93 TWh) in 2022 after Algeria (5.43 TWh) and the US (20.10 TWh), and at the same time the main source of LNG supplies in Europe. after the war in Ukraine. 71% of total exports went to Europe in 2022 compared to 31% in 2021. Greece through the new LNG terminals (Alexandroupolis, Dioryga Gas in Corinth and Mediterranean Gas in Volos) this could greatly increase exports from the Eastern Mediterranean, not only to Bulgaria and Romania, as is the case today, but also to the Nordic countries. Egypt appears to be interested in this prospect, as was established by DESFA Managing Director Maria Rita Ghali’s meeting yesterday in Cairo with Egyptian Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Tarek El Molla on the sidelines of the Egypt Petroleum Show 2023. DESFA circles report that the Egyptian minister already had a detailed understanding of the Greek FSRU. Ms. Ghali informed about the possibilities of the Greek gas transmission system, as well as issues of access and use of its infrastructure.

“green” hydrogen

The meeting also discussed the possibility of cooperation in transporting hydrogen through the Greek system, since Egypt will also be a key source of supplies to Europe of “green” hydrogen produced by photovoltaic installations. It is expected that contacts between DESFA and the relevant Egyptian operator will continue to facilitate the conclusion of business agreements for short-term natural gas supplies (until 2026-2027). The presence of HELLENiQ ENERGY, Kopelouzou, Energean Oil and Gas, Asprofos and HEREMA at the Egypt Petroleum Show in Cairo is linked to these and more business opportunities for the two countries.