Ceremonial launch of the construction of the Slovakia-Polish gas interconnector. (source: TASR)
The construction of a gas pipeline link between Slovakia and Poland was ceremonially launched at the gas transport hub in Veľké Kapušany (Košice Region) on Tuesday, September 18. Slovak Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini, who attended the event, praised it as an important contribution to Slovakia’s energy security.
“We’ll have another reserve resource of gas supplies if, God forbid, gas transit via Ukraine is halted,” said Pellegrini, as cited by the TASR newswire. “This link to Poland will allow us to cover for Slovakia’s annual gas consumption.
The Slovak-Polish gas interconnection will be built by Slovakia's Eustream and Poland's Gaz-System. It is scheduled to be put into operation in 2021. It will be 160-kilometres long, of which 103 kilometres will be in Slovakia. The overall cost for Slovakia should be €142 million, while the project has received a grant from the EU amounting to €55 million and a €70 million loan from the European Investment Bank.
The Veľké Kapušany-Strachocina link will in effect also connect Slovakia to the Baltic LNG terminal Świnoujście, which has direct access to alternative resources of natural gas from many other parts of the world.
