Southeastern Europe wants to become less dependent on Russian gas

Peter Livanos, 64, operates one of the largest liquid gas tanker fleets in Europe with 39 ships. The Greek tycoon is now having one of his tankers converted into a Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) at the Keppel Offshore & Marine specialist shipyard in Singapore.

It is to be anchored 17.6 kilometers southwest of the northern Greek port city of Alexandroupoli. When the terminal goes into operation next year, it will play a key role in the gas supply of south-eastern Europe.

Four countries in the region – Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia and North Macedonia – are working on networking their gas supplies. Other countries could join.

“We have great potential to build a common gas market,” said Bulgarian Prime Minister Kiril Petkov recently during a visit to the Serbian capital, Belgrade. “We have to join forces to achieve maximum diversification, better prices and more independence,” says Petkow.