site.btaFeasibility Study Begins for NATO-Funded Fuel Pipeline Linking Bulgaria, Greece, Turkiye and Romania

The Council of Ministers approved the implementation of a feasibility study for the construction of a fuel pipeline on Bulgarian territory, the Government Information Service said on Wednesday. The funding, amounting to EUR 10 million, will be provided by the Ministry of Defence under the NATO Security Investment Programme.

The project aims to expand NATO's fuel supply chain to the Alliance's Eastern Flank and connect Bulgaria's network to NATO infrastructure in Greece, Turkiye and Romania.

The Council of Ministers designated state-owned gas transmission operator Bulgartransgaz EAD as the contracting authority responsible for taking all necessary steps to carry out the feasibility study. The company is the only state-owned enterprise to have implemented comparable projects and has extensive experience in developing and managing infrastructure, investment and technical projects of this scale. It will be tasked with selecting a contractor, signing the contract, and organising and coordinating the subsequent activities.

In early May, Bloomberg reported that Türkiye had proposed the construction of a USD 1.2 billion military fuel pipeline from Turkiye to Romania via Bulgaria. The pipeline is intended to meet the energy needs of NATO's Eastern Flank.