Gas shipment from Türkiye to Bulgaria starts

Türkiye has delivered first cargo of natural gas to Bulgaria as part of a deal the two countries signed in January this year, The Turkish Petroleum Pipeline Company (Botaş) has announced.

Bulgarian Energy Minister Rossen Hristov attended ceremony at the Marmara Ereglisi LNG Terminal in Türkiye's northwestern Tekirdağ province, marking the shipment of gas.

"This cooperation is very important for Bulgaria's energy security. It is also important for southern Europe and central Europe. We view Türkiye as a reliable partner and will definitely boost our cooperation," Hristov said.

About 55 million cubic meters was sent to Bulgaria in the first delivery, according to Burhan Özcan, the general manager of Botaş.

The duration of the agreement which was inked on Jan. 3, is 13 years and there will be a gas transfer of up to 1.5 billion cubic meters per year.

"The capacity of the pipeline could be increased depending on the demand. Technically we are capable of doing this," Özcan said.

Türkiye's daily LNG gasification has increased to 161 million cubic meters thanks to the capacity expansion investments. "This corresponds to more than 50 billion cubic meters of gasification annually."

Bulgargaz General Manager Denitsa Zlateva also attended the ceremony.

Türkiye gets gas from different suppliers in the world through five LNG terminals and seven natural gas pipelines, Botaş said in a statement, adding that the country is moving fast toward its target of becoming an energy hub by taking advantage of its geographical location.