Skopje, 18 December 2024 (MIA) - Five bids have been received in response to the call for construction of the natural gas interconnector with Greece, and according to the Minister of Energy, Mining and Mineral Resources, Sanja Bozhinovska, the first best bid is EUR 11 million lower than the amounts in the previous tender. The companies are from Italy, Turkey, Serbia, and there is also a local one. The contract is expected to be signed at the end of January.

"We received five bids, of which the first best bid was EUR 11 million lower than the previous time. Noma Gas has completed the evaluation, and the procedures were sent yesterday. The EIB and EBRD need to review all the documents, and we hope there will be no objections. Catholic Christmas is coming and we hope that everything will be completed by the end of January, which means that we expect the signing at the end of January. Everything will be finalized by the end of January, everything that was up to us, up to Noma Gas, has been completed," Bozhinovska said in response to a reporter's question after Wednesday's signing of an EBRD grant agreement. 

She added that the remaining four bids in the call were also lower than previous ones. 

The most important thing, she noted, is that all legal procedures are observed, so that there are no irregularities later.

NOMA Gas announced the new call on October 21, 2024, with a financing amount of EUR 83,653,000. The Macedonian section of the gas pipeline is 67 km long.

Photo/video: MIA