Djedovic Handanovic: With EU, Serbia working on new energy supply sources, routes

BELGRADE - At a meeting with the head of the EU Mission to Serbia, Andreas von Beckerath, Serbian Minister of Energy and Mining Dubravka Djedovic Handanovic said on Thursday that, with EU assistance, Serbia was developing projects for new energy supply sources and routes - interconnections with Romania and North Macedonia - with a view to completing them by 2027 and putting them into operation as early as in 2028.

Djedovic Handanovic and von Beckerath discussed the security of energy supplies and investments in energy infrastructure, the Ministry of Energy and Mining said in a statement.

Djedovic Handanovic said diversification of gas supply sources and routes also called for development of a transport system within the country and that Serbia was part of a joint EU mechanism for gas procurements.

"There are challenges regarding funding for gas infrastructure, which must be overcome because gas is the base energy required for safe decarbonisation of the energy sector," the minister said.

She noted that a feasibility study for a gas interconnector with North Macedonia had been completed and that work on design and technical documentation was in the final stage.

The parties noted that the energy sector was an extremely important field of cooperation between the EU and Serbia and that infrastructure projects boosting the security of energy supplies in Serbia had been carried out successfully.

"Through the Serbia-Bulgaria gas interconnection, we are successfully obtaining natural gas supplies from Azerbaijan, from which we are getting secure gas quantities, with the flexibility of being able to increase them as needed. At the same time, we are expanding our underground gas storage facility while also using storage facilities in Hungary to ensure security of supplies and reserves in case of disruptions," Djedovic Handanovic said.

Von Beckerath noted that the EU was ready to support Serbia in preparing and building alternative energy supply routes.