Starting from 2027, Serbia has the possibility of supply of one billion cubic meters of gas annually from Azerbaijan, Minister of Mining and Energy of the Republic of Serbia, Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic said in an exclusive interview with Trend.
"Serbia and Azerbaijan have established strategic cooperation, owing to the friendly relations and mutual respect between President Aleksandar Vučić and President Ilham Aliyev. By signing the Memorandum of Understanding between the relevant ministries, we have expanded bilateral cooperation between Serbia and Azerbaijan in energy and ensured the supply of gas from this country in the amount of up to 400 million cubic meters of gas per year until 2026. Moreover, starting from 2027, we have the possibility of supply of one billion cubic meters of gas annually from Azerbaijan. After completing the Balkan Stream gas pipeline, which enhanced security and opened a new route of supply, we are now achieving the strategic goal of diversifying suppliers and further strengthening our position as a transit country for gas supplies to Central European countries. We expect the completion of the Serbia-Bulgaria gas interconnection in the coming days, which will fulfil the infrastructural prerequisites for a new source of gas supply," said the minister.
Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic noted that the memorandum also opens additional opportunities for cooperation between the two countries, involving the delivery of liquefied natural gas through LNG terminals in Türkiye and Greece, as well as potential cooperation on developing capacities for constructing gas power plants and gas storage facilities.
"All projections show that Serbia's demand for natural gas will grow in this decade. The total consumption of gas is expected to increase from around three billion cubic meters of gas in 2022 to approximately four billion cubic meters by 2030. The Memorandum and contract signed today enable us to anticipate larger volumes of gas and more suppliers, ensuring greater security in the supply of our citizens and the economy. Additionally, following the completion of the gas interconnector to Bulgaria, we are planning new interconnections, primarily with North Macedonia," said the minister.
She pointed out that according to the Plan for the Development of Energy Infrastructure and Energy Efficiency Measures until 2028 with projections until 2030, adopted by the Government of Serbia in June, it is planned to increase capacities from solar energy and wind energy by 3.4 GW of installed power by 2030.
"This year, the Law on Renewable Energy Sources has been amended and the regulatory framework has been finalized, which enabled us to conduct the largest auctions conducted at once for the allocation of market premiums for renewable energy sources in the Western Balkans region. The auction results indicate that in the next few years, there will be nine new green power plants with a capacity of 700 MW (of which 425 MW is in the incentive system). According to projections, the state will earn 12-28 million euros annually. By changing regulations, we have created a favorable investment environment, as evident in the participation of reputable companies from the EU, UAE, Israel, as well as domestic investors in the first auctions. A three-year auction plan was also adopted, which is expected to grant incentives for 1300 MW, while the next auctions are set to commence by the middle of next year. Decarbonisation and achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, i.e. the maximum reduction of the negative impact of energy on the climate is a shared task and goal for all countries. It is one of the areas in which we can deepen our cooperation with Azerbaijan," said Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic.
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