Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB)

Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (IGB) is a trans-boundary pipeline project involving the construction of a 182 km-long natural gas pipeline between Greece and Bulgaria.

The pipeline will begin at Komotini in Greece and end at Stara Zagora in Bulgaria, including approximately 31 km running through Greece and 151 km through Bulgaria.
It will be able to transport up to 3 Bcm/year in forward flow to Bulgaria -- with an option to increase that to 5 Bcm/year -- and up to 2 Bcm/year in reverse flow.

The link will give Bulgaria and neighbours with new grid connections access to the expanding global gas market.
That includes a connection with the TAP carrying gas from Azerbaijan as well as suppliers of LNG that arrives by ship, likely to include Qatar, Algeria and the U.S.

The project is a key part of the strategy for greater integration of gas markets, which includes interconnection projects Bulgaria – Greece, Bulgaria – Romania, Romania – Hungary.

The IGB pipeline has been under development since 2009, the FID for the IGB project was taken in December 2015.

IGB is 50% co-owned by Bulgaria's state-owned BEH and a joint venture between Greece's DEPA and Italy's Edison.

The IGB project is expected to cost €240 million, with equity funding from shareholders, an additional grant of €39 million from the European Structural and Investment Funds, €45 million under the European Energy Program for Reconstruction (EEPR) and €110 million on loan from the European Investment Bank.

It is expected to be put into operation in September 2022.