Greece and Bulgaria Signed Gas Agreement to Reduce Dependence on Russia

Bulgaria will acquire a stake in a Greek company that is building a liquefied natural gas terminal near Alexandroupolis Greece and Bulgaria are seeking to reduce their dependence on Russian gas by signing an agreement that will allow Bulgaria to acquire a stake in a planned LNG terminal in northeastern Greece. The project, which has received strong US support, aims to diversify energy resources in southeastern Europe, a region heavily dependent on Russian natural gas. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his Bulgarian counterpart Boyko Borisov attended the agreement signing under which the state-controlled Bulgarian company Bulgartransgaz will acquire a 20 percent stake in the Greek company Gastrade, that is building an LNG terminal near the Greek city of Alexandroupolis. “This massive investment will help us achieve our ultimate goal of turning our easternmost port into a global energy hub,” Mitsotakis said. “There is also a geopolitical benefit here. A new axis of natural gas routes diversification is being created, not only for Bulgaria, but also for Central Europe, which will no longer rely on a single source of energy,” he added.