EUSTREAM, the largest company transporting Russian natural gas through Slovakia to other countries of the European Union, is continuing to construct a new interconnection between the gas transmission systems of Slovakia and Hungary.
The interconnection between the Hungarian and the Slovak transmission systems will enhance natural gas connections in central Europe. By means of a non-binding ‘open season phase’ Eustream and its Hungarian partner FGSZ would like to assess future market demand and discuss pipeline transportation capacity requirements with interested parties who may start registering to do so via the company’s internet site www.eustream.sk.
The purpose of this non-binding open season phase is for interested shippers to inform Eustream and FGSZ about their interest in capacity booking along the new pipeline. Information provided by interested shippers in this phase will not be considered legally binding and those that register will be invited to a common information meeting.
A memorandum of understanding to build the new interconnecting pipeline was signed by Eustream and FGSZ in June 2009. The pipeline has a length of approximately 115 kilometres and will connect the Slovak high-pressure pipelines at Veľký Krtíš with the Hungarian transmission system at Vecsés near Budapest. Eustream expects the gas pipeline to start operations no later than the beginning of 2013.
“Additional cross-border capacities will enhance gas market liquidity and increase the security of gas supply in the region,” said Andreas Rau, the chairman of the board of directors of Eustream.
“Moreover, the project can be connected to other European gas infrastructure systems in the future, such as Nabucco, South Stream or the Croatian LNG terminal,” added board member Antoine Jourdain. In the event of a restriction in natural gas supplies, the Slovak-Hungarian connection could be used to receive gas supplies from western parts of Europe through the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, onwards to Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania and Croatia.
The project connecting gas pipelines in Slovakia and Hungary is included in the European Economic Recovery Plan (EERP) in which the EU wants to allocate approximately €2.4 billion for gas and electricity infrastructure projects.
