December 17 (SeeNews) - Croatian state-owned gas transmission system operator Plinacro said on Thursday the first phase of the construction of the Zlobin-Slobodnica gas pipeline should be completed in 2019, delivering transmission capacity of 4.6 billion cu m per year.
The overall price tag of the Zlobin-Bosiljevo-Sisak-Kozarac-Slobodnica gas pipeline project is around 370 million euro ($401.4 million) with ultimate capacity planned at 10 billion cu m per year, Plinacro said in a statement.
The planned pipeline would link at Slobodnica to an existing interconnection with Hungary and planned interconnectors with Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, Plinacro said, adding that it will be part of the Baltic-Adriatic gas corridor that should connect the Croatian and Polish liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals. Zlobin-Slobodnica will also connect to the planned Ionian Adriatic Pipeline.
In July, Plinacro received a 2.25 million euro grant from the EU's Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) for preparatory activities on the gas pipeline which is included in the bloc's list of Projects of Common Interest (PCIs).
Croatia plans to build an LNG terminal on the Adriatic island of Krk, which alongside the award of off- and on-shore oil and gas permits and participation in the Ionian Adriatic Pipeline project, is part of efforts to develop the country into a regional energy hub.
The Krk LNG terminal, which will be able to receive the largest LNG carriers of up to 265,000 cu m, is planned to comprise two storage tanks with a capacity of 180,000 cu m each.
PCIs are eligible, among other things, for a set of tailor-made measures accelerating the permit granting process and, under specific conditions, for financial assistance under CEF.
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