English
Linking Macedonia to the LNG port in Alexandropoli will dramatically improve its geostrategic position, said Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski in Washington.
The purpose of that pipeline needs to be explained more clearly to the public. The liquefied natural gas terminal known as the LNG terminal in Greece — Alexandroupolis — needs to be connected with Central Europe in order to compete with South Stream. The capacity is around 3 billion cubic meters, and if the pressure is increased it can reach 6 billion. What makes it specific is that the pipeline is bidirectional. Until now, as a country, we had only one one-way entry point — Zhidilovo — with a capacity of around 800 million cubic meters, or 1.2 billion with increased pressure. That means the gas capacity we could use tomorrow in Macedonia with the construction of this pipeline is dramatically increased.
But to be on the transit route, which is in fact our goal and ambition, we also have to complete the northern interconnector that will connect us with neighboring Serbia. That one will also be bidirectional. So when we finish these two projects, which I expect will be by the end of 2028, the country’s geostrategic position will be completely different. At the moment we as a country consume around half a billion cubic meters a year. That means we will have 12 times greater capacity for investment in gas-fired power plants that would produce electricity, which would then be used in data centers, and from them we would draw opportunities for artificial intelligence. That is a serious plan for the country’s development and for where Macedonia should be heading in the future.The bottleneck is the high-voltage electricity transmission networks. We are excellently connected with our northern and southern neighbors by 400 kV transmission lines. We are also excellently connected with our eastern neighbor — one 400 kV line and two parallel 110 kV lines — and we are now building the project that will connect us with our western neighbor, again with a 400 kV line. With that we will literally be an energy crossroads when it comes to high-voltage electricity transmission. All of these projects are critical infrastructure. All of them increase resilience in the region, security, and they are very important for NATO’s eastern flank. As a country, we can use our now stronger geostrategic position and extract benefit from all of this for the citizens, and develop economically faster. That is the essence, and that is the priority of this government.