Croatia, Bosnia sign pipeline deal to reduce dependency on Russia

Croatia and Bosnia signed an agreement Tuesday to build a gas pipeline designed to reduce energy dependency on Russia in the volatile Balkans region.

The Southern Interconnection pipeline will link Bosnia with Croatia’s gas network and the liquefied natural gas terminal on the Adriatic Sea island of Krk.

Bosnia has designated a US-based company, AAFS Infrastructure and Energy, as the project’s investor and developer.

Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic and the chair of Bosnia’s Council of Ministers, Borjana Kristo, signed the deal in the presence of US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright on the sidelines of a summit of the countries of the Baltic, Black and Adriatic regions.

Plenkovic on social media said the gas pipeline would help diversify supplies: “We are strengthening energy security and independence... which is especially important in these challenging global circumstances.”  Kristo called it “a big day for both countries”.

Bosnia currently imports practically all of its gas from Russia via pipelines running through neighbouring Serbia and through Bulgaria along the Turk Stream route.

The new gas pipeline investment could reach up to $1.5 billion, local media have reported.