Vertical Corridor expansion gains momentum
The meeting in Athens between the ministers of Greece, Bulgaria, North Macedonia and Serbia, with the participation of the relevant TSOs, marks the advancement of plans to expand the Vertical Corridor across the region.
According to sources from the Greek Ministry of Environment and Energy that spoke to “N”, the meeting aims to serve as the first step toward broadening the Vertical Corridor throughout the Balkans, in line with and complementary to the infrastructure projects currently being developed among the participating countries.
It is recalled that construction of the Greece–North Macedonia interconnector pipeline is already underway and is expected to be completed and become operational in 2027, while similar plans are being examined for the interconnection between North Macedonia and Serbia.
According to sources noted, the involvement — and even more importantly, the commitment — of the two new countries to the Vertical Corridor initiative alongside Greece and Bulgaria upgrades the region’s infrastructure network, creating a backbone of pipelines and transmission routes that further enhances coordination among neighboring states, with the ultimate objective of ensuring the uninterrupted flow of LNG throughout the region.
“In essence, a dense network of interconnections is being created, with neighboring states coordinated and operating in a complementary manner,” sources noted, in contrast to the current model, where parallel south-to-north flows exist without the ability to generate synergies.
Emphasis on Synergies
Energy Minister Stavros Papastavrou, speaking at the “Energy Transition Summit: East Med & Southeast Europe” conference organized by the Financial Times in cooperation with Kathimerini, referred to a “change in culture,” with the participating states now recognizing far more clearly the strategic dimension of the project known as the “Vertical Corridor.”
More specifically, when asked about the Vertical Corridor, the minister stressed that “it is something far beyond an economic dimension. It has a transformational impact. For our region, this represents a historic paradigm shift — a change in culture. We grew up within a history that separated us. A history of wars and, at times, a history of division between East and West. And now all the ministers of these countries are emphasizing how inextricably linked we are.”
He also added that “this is a colossal paradigm shift for the region. We were not taught to cooperate. And energy has this unique dimension — it brings us together.”
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