Storage Regasification Unit

A photo taken by drone shows the transshipment procedures of the first cargo of liquefied natural gas (LNG) at the Floating Terminal in Alexandroupolis, northern Greece, 21 February 2024.

The Greece-Bulgaria interconnector (IGB) will be a game-changer in the energy market, George Satlas, executive officer and board member of ICGB AD, the manager and commercial operator of the natural gas pipeline, told the Athens-Macedonian News Agency in an interview.

"The United States proudly supports Greece's leadership role in redrawing the energy map of Southeast Europe, diversifying energy sources with its Balkan neighbors and helping to break Russia's gas monopoly," US Ambassador to Greece George J. Tsunis said in a tweet, after visiting the northern city of Alexandroupoli with four fellow ambassadors from Balkan countries on Friday.

The expiry of long-term, oil-indexed natural gas contracts at the end of 2021 offers Turkey an opportunity to negotiate more competitive gas prices based on more flexible terms, particularly with Russia.

Speaking on Thursday to the chief executive officer of Public Gas Corporation (DEPA), Konstantinos Xifaras, US Ambassador in Athens Geoffrey Pyatt expressed Washington's warm support for the project of the Floating Storage Regasification Unit (FSRU) off Alexandroupoli in northeastern Greece, as it assists the US in its strategy for the diversification of Europe's energy sources.

Greek officials have conveyed concerns over Turkey's illegal activities inside Cyprus' exclusive economic zone (EEZ) during Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Matthew Palmer's visit to Athens on Wednesday.