April 27 (SeeNews) - The natural gas supply from Russia to North Macedonia via Bulgaria is uninterrupted, North Macedonia's economy minister Kreshnik Bekteshi said on Wednesday, after Russia's Gazprom halted gas deliveries to Bulgaria.
"The halt of gas supply from Russia to Bulgaria does not affect North Macedonia, which means that we have continued gas deliveries from Gazprom through the pipeline in Bulgaria," Bekteshi told a press conference streamed on his Facebook account.
In case the agreement for transit of natural gas between Bulgaria's gas transmission system operator Bulgartransgaz and Gazprom is terminated, North Macedonia will consider buying gas from alternative sources, such as the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), which could be delivered through Greece and Bulgaria, Bekteshi added.
North Macedonia does not have natural gas reserves and relies on gas imports from Russia. The country's current gas supply agreement with Gazprom will expire in 2030.
In response to EU sanctions imposed on Russia in the wake of the Ukraine invasion, Gazprom earlier on Wednesday stopped gas deliveries to Poland and Bulgaria and said they will not resume until payments are received in Russian rubles, instead of US dollars.
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