Bulgarian operator builds €860 million hydrogen pipeline project

Bulgatransgaz, the operator of Bulgaria's public gas transmission system, has stated that it is in the early stages of developing a new hydrogen infrastructure project that is expected to require a total investment of €860 million in the near term and will form part of a future hydrogen corridor from southeastern Europe to Central Europe.

Bulgartransgaz said in a draft 10-year investment plan released today that the project, which is being developed to connect with similar infrastructure developed in Greece by its peer DESFA, would include a new 250km pipeline through southwestern Bulgaria, And two new gas compression stations in the Pietrich and Dupnita-Bobov Dol regions.

The pipeline will enable the two-way flow of hydrogen between Bulgaria and Greece and create a new interconnector in the Kulata-Sidirokastro border region. The EHB is a consortium of 32 energy infrastructure operators of which Bulgartransgaz is a member. Under the investment plan, Bulgartransgaz will allocate an additional 438 million euros by 2027 to transform the existing gas transport infrastructure so that it can carry up to 10 percent hydrogen. The project, which is still in the exploration phase, will develop a smart gas network in the country.

Projects to retrofit existing gas transmission networks could also gain critical infrastructure status in Europe, Bulgatransgaz said in a statement. It aims to create opportunities to integrate and transport renewable gas mixtures with concentrations of up to 10% hydrogen.