North Macedonia, Serbia, Greece, and Bulgaria to hold energy summit

Energy ministers from North Macedonia, Serbia, Greece, and Bulgaria are scheduled to hold a second ministerial summit in Serbia next week. The meeting aims to advance regional energy cooperation, accelerate infrastructure projects, and strengthen the security and resilience of energy systems.

The summit follows an initial meeting held in Athens in May, where the four nations agreed to treat energy security as a shared regional priority rather than a strictly national one. Key discussion topics include synchronizing transmission system capacities and operating regimes, facilitating cross-border transport, and integrating regional energy markets.

For North Macedonia, strategic focus remains on two major gas interconnectors. The project with Greece, which provides access to diverse natural gas sources including LNG infrastructure, has a planned initial capacity of 1.5 billion cubic meters per year and is expected to be completed by 2027. Additionally, a 29.4 million euro agreement was signed in September for the design and construction of the Macedonian portion of the interconnector with Serbia, which will feature a capacity of 1.4 billion cubic meters per year.

Discussions will also cover electricity grids, renewable energy sources, energy storage, and the expansion of the Vertical Gas Corridor to the Western Balkans to enable more flexible south-to-north gas flows.