April 19 (SeeNews) - Bulgarian gas trading platform Balkan Gas Hub, a wholly-owned subsidiary of transmission system operator Bulgartransgaz, has become an official member of Europex, the association of European energy exchanges and market operators, aiming to promote liquid, secure and transparent wholesale energy and environmental markets, the two parties said.
Membership of Europex would mean that Balkan Gas Hub, which has both spot and long-term trading segments, will be able to work alongside its European peers to help develop an integrated, transparent and cleared gas market in Europe, Europex said in a statement on Tuesday.
The addition of the Bulgarian gas trading platform, which Bulgartransgaz set up in 2019, brings to 33 the total members of Europex. Among its members from Southeast Europe are the electricity and gas market operators of Albania, Slovenia, Romania, Montenegro, Croatia, Greece, North Macedonia as well as the Independent Bulgarian Energy Exchange (IBEX), a subsidiary of state-owned Bulgarian Energy Holding (BEH), and energy exchanges from Western Europe.
Europex members also act as registered reporting mechanisms (RRMs) and inside information platforms (IIPs) in the framework of the EU Regulation on Wholesale Energy Market Integrity and Transparency (REMIT). They also operate registries for guarantees of origin for renewable energy.