Ukraine approved the gas supply route via the Trans-Balkan Corridor
This will allow the import of about a billion cubic meters of natural gas per year from Greece
Ukraine has agreed on a joint product for booking capacities from Greece to Ukraine via the Trans-Balkan route. This was reported by the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine. On the Ukrainian side, the National Commission for State Regulation of Energy and Utilities (NKREKP) adopted a corresponding decision at a meeting on May 27.
The agency emphasizes that this will provide the possibility of alternative and competitive supplies of natural gas and strengthen the energy security of the region.
The gas transmission system operators of Ukraine (LTD "GTS Operator of Ukraine"), Bulgaria (Bulgartransgaz EAD), Greece (DESFA SA), Moldova (VestMoldTransgaz SRL) and Romania (Transgaz SA) have addressed their national regulators with the initiative.
"Having abandoned Russian energy sources, Ukraine, like our partners in the EU, is actively working to find alternative gas supply routes. The use of the Trans-Balkan route is of great importance in this context. The gas transportation system of Ukraine, as well as our underground gas storage facilities, which are part of this route, will play an important role in strengthening the energy security of the entire region. Therefore, we hope for positive decisions by all participating countries regarding the use of the Trans-Balkan route for our common strategic goals," said Ukrainian Energy Minister Herman Galushchenko.
The ministry emphasizes that "the Trans-Balkan route has significant potential to meet Ukraine's urgent needs and provides access to LNG sources. At the same time, the route passes through five countries and the direct application of regulated tariffs makes it commercially unprofitable compared to alternatives. Given the situation, the GTS operators have worked out an optimized solution that will allow, in particular, to use the already unused capacities of the Trans-Balkan Pipeline to import gas to Ukraine at a competitive tariff, which is especially relevant during the preparation for the next heating season," the agency said in a statement.
According to the decision, the auction will be held on the Regional Booking Platform (RBP) according to the following schedule: for June 2025 - on the last Thursday of the month preceding the capacity usage period; for July - October 2025 - on the fourth Monday of the month preceding the capacity usage month.
"Such a launch opens up additional opportunities for importing natural gas in volumes of up to 100 million cubic meters per month already this summer," Oksana Kryvenko, Director of the Ukrainian Gas and Natural Gas Regulatory Authority, commented at a meeting of the regulator, Ukrinform reports.
Starting in the fall, according to her, it will be possible to import up to 200 million cubic meters of gas per month via the Trans-Balkan Corridor.
According to the National Commission for the Regulation of Energy and Natural Gas Regulatory Commission of Ukraine, the adopted decision provides for a single auction to allocate capacity at all points of the Trans-Balkan Corridor along the natural gas transportation route from Greece to Ukraine - approximately 3 million cubic meters per day.
As reported by "Ukrainian Energy", the UEB has introduced the possibility of trading imported gas. Starting from May 20, it will be possible to sell imported gas on the Ukrainian Energy Exchange (UEB) platform.
