November 11 (SeeNews) - Bulgaria and Serbia have connected the pipes of their sections of Gazprom's TurkStream pipeline for the transit of natural gas to Europe, Serbian media reported on Wednesday.
"The gas pipeline is connected, but it is not definitely finished, some things still need to be done, such as connecting installations, compressor stations. A trial release of minimum quantities of gas can be done in January, and the operation of the gas pipeline is expected to start in the spring," daily Vecernje Novosti quoted the president of Serbia's natural gas association, Vojislav Vuletic, as saying.
The maximum capacity of the pipeline will be reached in a few years' time, Vuletic added.
"Our compressor station will be completed in May next year when the Bulgarians should finish one of their own, while the other will be built in 2022. The testing and filling of the gas pipeline are in progress," Vecernje Novosti quoted the director of state-owned gas monopoly Srbijagas, Dusan Bajatovic, as saying.
Bajatovic has rejected the possibility of the U.S. administration blocking the project by imposing sanctions on companies engaged in the works. "All companies participating in the project, including Srbijagas and Gastrans, received a letter from the State Department asking them to declare their participation in the project and so far no one has asked for the introduction of sanctions, because the pipeline is practically completed."
Serbia completed in December 2019 the laying on its territory of about 400 km of pipes of the string of the TurkStream pipeline for the transit of natural gas to Europe from Turkey via Bulgaria, Serbia and Hungary.
In June, Hungary's national gas transmission network operator FGSZ approved an investment plan for the construction of a cross-border gas interconnection with Serbia. Under the investment plan, the gas link will have an annual capacity to carry 6 billion cubic metres of gas per year which will be reached on October 1, 2021.
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