Transgaz, the operator of the national gas transport system, sent a letter on Wednesday to several high-ranking European officials asking the EU member states that are beneficiaries of the Modernization Fund to support the investment projects proposed by Romania.

According to a document consulted by CaleaEuropeană.ro, the letter signed by the director Ion Sterian is addressed to the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, the vice-president of the EC Maros Sefcovic, the European commissioner for energy Kadri Simson, the president and vice-president of the European Investment Bank and the energy ministers of Bulgaria , Czech Republic, Croatia, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Slovakia, Germany, Sweden, Netherlands and Greece.

The document concerns the investment projects submitted by Romania within the Modernization Fund and which are expected to be evaluated by the EIB and the Investment Committee on October 25, 2023.

According to the quoted source, the projects submitted by Romania are of major importance for achieving the goals of decarbonization and security of natural gas supply for the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, the Balkans, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine.

In total, Romania submitted seven gas transport projects for financing:

– Natural gas transport pipeline for supplying CET Mintia;

– Increasing the transport capacity of Transgaz and the natural gas supply capacity of the Isalnița Electrocentral Branch and the Turceni Electrocentral Branch;

– Natural gas transport pipeline Jupa – Băile Herculane – Orșova – Prunișor;

– Natural gas transport pipeline DN600 Mihai Bravu – Siliștea and the transformation into a pipeline;

– Natural gas transport pipeline Tetila – Horezu – Râmnicu Vâlcea;

– Natural gas transport pipeline Black Sea – Podisor;

– Natural gas transport pipeline Ghercești – Jitaru;

Among these projects, the Black Sea – Podișor gas pipeline has a major strategic implication in the context of the exploitation that OMV Petrom and Romgaz will start, the project through which Romania will become the largest gas producer in the EU already entering the development phase. The project will generate a production of about 100 billion cubic meters of natural gas, and the first quantities of gas from the Black Sea would be extracted in 2027.