Transgaz to take EUR 50 M loan from the EIB to finance BRHA pipeline

Shareholders of national gas carrier Transgaz will have a presentation of the report on the conclusion  of a loan contract amounting to EUR 50 million with the European Investment Bank (EIB) for the financing of Phase I of Bulgaria – Romania – Hungary – Austria (BRHA) gas pipeline project.

The subject will be debated at the ordinary general meeting of the shareholders set for November 27, according to the convening sent to the Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB).

The new pipeline will be with a length of 550 km. Transgaz received already EUR 179 million from the European Commission for this project.

BRHA gas pipeline project will be completed by all four states involved, according to a memorandum of understanding signed in Bucharest at end-September.

Following the signing of this document, all countries have agreed and clearly established that there will be a reverse-flow interconnection, i.e. in both directions, in all four states. Including between Hungary and Austria it has been established that this interconnection will be on reverse-flow, and Austria has committed to finalize Phase I, as are Hungary and Bulgaria, and for Phase II, all four countries have agreed that they will run this project and complete it in the established parameters.

On the Romanian territory, the pipeline route mainly follows the SE-W direction and crosses the counties of Giurgiu, Teleorman, Dambovita, Arges, Olt, Valcea, Gorj, Hunedoara, Caras-Severin, and Timis.

The pipeline will connect eastern and central Europe with gas fields in the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea. Works on the project are set to begin by the end of 2017 and are expected to be concluded by the end of 2019. The pipeline will transmit its first quantities when ExxonMobil and OMV Petrom start producing the energy resource from the Black Sea fields.