Bosnia's Serb Republic and Gazprom to start talks on TurkStream branch at end-September

Banja Luka, September 12 - Neftegaz.RU. Bosnia's Serb Republic will start detailed negotiations with Gazprom at the end of the month on a project for construction of a branch of the TurkStream gas pipeline towards the entity, Seenews reported.

"We will start talks on the procedures and the further steps ahead of us at the end of September," news daily Glas Srpske quoted the head of the Serb Republic's representative office in Russia, Dusko Perovic, as saying.

Petrovic said earlier that the project envisages a feasibility study, technical studies, mapping the pipeline's route and other details, Glas Srpske said.

In June, Milorad Dodik, the Serb member of Bosnia's tripartite presidency, said that the construction of a gas pipeline that will link the Serb Republic with TurkStream will cost some $331 million. Dodik was speaking after attending the 2019 International Economic Forum in St.Petersburg. Dodik also said that the construction of the pipeline will be financed by Gazprom, adding "we will participate as much as we can".

Gazprom plans to build a string of its TurkStream pipeline for transmission of Russian natural gas to Europe from Turkey via Bulgaria, Serbia and Hungary. Serbia has already started the construction of its 403 km-long section of the future transit pipeline and plans to complete it in December.

To connect TurkStream to the Serb Republic, a separate pipeline will be built from Bijeljina, on the border with Serbia, to the entity's main city of Banja Luka.

The Serb Republic is one of the 2 autonomous entities that make up Bosnia and Herzegovina. The other one is the Federation.


Author: Iskra Pavlova