Greece is in talks over extra imports of liquefied natural gas from
Algeria to avert possible shortages in case of a cut in Russian gas
supplies, a senior Greek official has said.
According to the Oxford Institute of Energy Studies, in 2009, when
Russia halted gas deliveries to much of Europe through pipelines
transiting Ukraine in a price dispute with the Ukrainian government,
Greece was able to buy liquefied natural gas (LNG) to make up for the
shortfall as well as supply gas to its northern neighbour Bulgaria.
Russia’s Gazprom supplies two-thirds of the natural gas Greece consumes.
Unlike Greece, which according to the country’s Energy Minister Yiannis
Maniatis is among the best prepared EU member states for a possible
disruption of Russian gas supplies in the winter, Bulgaria, which relies
on deliveries of Russian gas via a single pipeline via Ukraine to meet
nearly 90% of its gas needs, is much more vulnerable to a disruption.
According to Spanoudis, a final investment decision on the construction
of an interconnector linking Greece and Bulgaria is expected to be made
by the end of the year. The link that would help offset the impact of
possible cuts in Russian gas flowing through Ukraine, is projected to
carry up to five billion cubic metres of gas a year and become
operational in 2017.
(www.hbcbg.com)