site.btaEC Approves Funding for Bulgartransgaz's Hydrogen Infrastructure Project

The European Commission (EC) has approved funding of EUR 4.56 million, excluding VAT, for Bulgartransgaz EAD’s project Hydrogen Infrastructure in Bulgaria. The project has been granted the status of a Project of Common Interest for the European Union, with the funds provided under the Connecting Europe Facility, the company said on Thursday.

“The approved funding from the EC’s institutions is yet another piece of good news for the Bulgarian gas transmission operator, which continues to play a leading role in ensuring security in the region through the implementation of the Vertical Corridor and its participation in the digital corridor between Asia and Europe. The energy infrastructure developed by Bulgartransgaz reinforces the role of Bulgartransgaz in achieving European and national energy transition goals in the region,” the company’s Executive Director, Vladimir Malinov, said as quoted in the statement.

The project is the first phase in the development of Bulgaria’s “hydrogen backbone” and is a key part of the Southeast European Hydrogen Corridor linking Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Germany. Bulgartransgaz’s project foresees the construction of a hydrogen pipeline roughly 250 km in length, connecting Sofia with the Bulgarian–Greek border near Kulata, along with two new compressor stations and supporting facilities.

Under the current call for proposals, Bulgartransgaz’s project is the only hydrogen-related investment in Eastern Europe to have been approved. The planned activities include the preparation of a feasibility study; spatial planning; environmental procedures; archaeological surveys; and investment design, specifically the technical design phase.

“The hydrogen projects we are working on are creating new development opportunities for Bulgaria’s energy sector,” Malinov added.