Energy Community to reach decision on exemption of Serbia pipeline from EU Third Energy Package by February 5

The Energy Community will reach the decision on the request for the exemption of the pipeline through Serbia from the Third Energy Package by February 5, 2019, the director of the Secretariat of the Energy Community, Janez Kopac, said for Balkanmagazin.

– Due to the great complexity of the project, the Energy Community last week requested additional information from the Energy Agency of Serbia, whose Council reached the decision on the exemption of the main pipeline from the Bulgarian to the Hungarian border from the Third Energy Package of the EU on October 1 – Kopac said.

As he explained, the procedure of the exemption of a new gas infrastructure, such as an interconnector, is regulated by the Third Energy Package and in the Energy Community, and Serbia is subject to its provisions under its Energy Law, passed in 2014.

– If carried out in line with the rules, the procedure is fully legal and legitimate – Kopac said in a written statement sent to Balkanmagazin regarding the decision made by the Council of the Energy Agency of Serbia on October 1 to allow Gastrans Novi Sad to be exempt from the obligation to implement the third party access rules for the future pipeline, which will run through Serbia and be connected to the national systems of Bulgaria and Hungary.

The pipeline will be laid down the route initially set for South Stream. The route should be used, among other things, to transport Russian gas which will be delivered through the second branch of TurkStream through the Black Sea to Turkey and then further through Bulgaria, Serbia and Hungary to consumers in Europe.

Gastrans filed a request for exemption to the Energy Agency citing Article 288 of the Energy Law.

According to the director of Srbijagas and Gastrans, Dusan Bajatovic, the value of the project of the construction of TurkStream through Serbia is EUR 1.08 billion, and state guarantees of EUR 70 million from the 2019 state budget draft are meant for the realization of the project.

He said that the plan was for the Serbian section of TurkStream to be completed in 2020.

Energy Community Secretariat Viena

Agencija za energetiku Republike Srbije

GASTRANS d.o.o. Novi Sad

JP Srbijagas Novi Sad

Energy Community

Secretariat of the Energy Community

Energy Agency of Serbia

Gastrans Novi Sad

Srbijagas

Janez Kopac

Dusan Bajatovic

Energy Law

TurkStream pipeline

EU Third Energy Package

gas infrastructure

gas interconnector

South Stream route through Serbia