Russia and Serbia extend Russian gas supply contract

Srbijagas logo; Photo: Srbijagas

Srbijagas Director Dusan Bajatovic on Wednesday told deputies in the Serbian National Assembly that the contract by which Russia supplies Serbia with natural gas has been extended for another three months, as well as that he expects it will soon be extended for the period until the end of the year.

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"Now we have extended, I did not announced it before, although it has already happened, the gas arrangement for the next three months, we will extend it until the New Year soon," Bajatovic said during an Assembly session dedicagted to, among other things, the provision of guarantees by the Republic of Serbia for the settlement of obligations of Srbijagas, the state-owned gas enterprise - which the opposition criticized.

Bajatovic said that there can be no investments without a gas supply, and that unless some of the mentioned projects are completed - such as the interconnection with Romania and North Macedonia, as well as increasing capacities towards Hungary and storage facilities - the price of gas will rise by at least 40 percent.

"If we were to listen to some analysts and import it from the German coast, the price will increase by 80 percent. I think, if you look at the European agenda, all those transmission stations and all those gas pipelines are on the European agenda and are a condition, among other things, for the opening of cluster 3 (in Serbia's EU accession negotiations). Among other things, those transmission stations are a condition for opening the market. Europe is demanding all that," stated the director of Srbijagas.

Bajatovic also said that Srbijagas finances investment loans itself, but that a guarantee from the state that the projects will be completed is necessary.

(Telegraf Biznis/RTS)