PL-SK Interconnector
The Poland – Slovakia Gas Interconnector project covers the construction of a new cross–border gas pipeline to interconnect the natural gas transmission systems of Poland and Slovakia.
The aim of integrating the Polish and Slovak systems as a part of the North – South Gas Corridor is to ensure the diversification and stability of gas supply in both countries and to promote the development of a competitive gas market across the region. The interconnection of the Polish and Slovak transmission systems may enable Polish entities’ access to gas supply from the so–called Southern Corridor delivering gas from the Caspian Sea region, and to LNG supply from the Adriatic Sea area. In addition to providing access to gas, including LNG, in the Polish market, the interconnection may, in the future, open the possibility of receiving supplies of the commodity from the Baltic Sea area and from unconventional gas extraction sites in Poland, and this not only for the Slovak market but for the whole region.
Project of Common Interest (PCI)
Project of Common Interest No 6.2.1 Poland – Slovakia Gas Interconnector project
Project description and substantiation from an energy policy perspective
Aiming to interconnect the Polish and Slovak gas transmission systems, the Poland – Slovakia Gas Interconnector project is a part of the European Union’s priority energy infrastructure corridor referred to as North – South Gas Interconnections in Central Eastern and South – Eastern Europe (NSI East Gas). The aim of the Poland – Slovakia Gas Interconnector project is to construct a bi-directional gas pipeline interconnector between the Republic of Poland and the Slovak Republic with a technical capacity of 4.7 billion cubic metres per year in the direction from Poland to Slovakia and 5.7 billion cubic metres per year in the direction from Slovakia to Poland. The gas interconnection between Poland and Slovakia will involve constructing a new DN 1000 cross-border gas pipeline with a total length of approximately 164 km (including up to max. 103 km on the Slovak side and 61 km on the Polish side), which will interconnect the natural gas transmission systems of Poland and Slovakia. This bi-directional gas pipeline will connect South – Eastern Poland with the Veľké Kapušany compressor station in Eastern Slovakia. The project will also include the construction of a compressor station in Strachocina, Poland and modification of the existing compressor station in Veľké Kapušany.
The implementation of this project will be an important milestone towards building a well-functioning and fully integrated internal market. Its completion will be a significant step to reinforcing the Union’s stability and better preparedness for possible future crises in order to reduce the EU Member States’ dependence on Russian gas. The construction of the Poland – Slovakia Gas Interconnector will contribute to providing a platform for a competitive and liquid gas market to allow for the entry of new market players, and to enhancing the security and stability of gas supply for the relevant countries and, in a broader context, for all Eastern and South – Eastern Europe. It is also a next step in the implementation of the North – South Gas Interconnections in Central Eastern and South – Eastern Europe (NSI East Gas).
The project, and in particular the “Preparatory Studies and Engineering Works for the Poland – Slovakia Gas Interconnector” project action, was classified on 21 November 2014 as eligible for financial support under the CEF energy programme. In November 2014, the Polish and Slovak energy regulatory authorities issued coordinated cross-border cost allocation decisions for the Poland - Slovakia Gas Interconnector project in accordance with the Regulation (EU) No 347/2013 and the ACER Recommendation No 07/2013. In 2017, the project also received a positive assessment from the European Commission for CEF financial support for the project implementation.
The commissioning of the pipeline for commercial operation is scheduled for 2022.
Contact details of the project implementers
eustream, a.s.
Votrubova 11/A
821 09 Bratislava
Slovak Republic
http://www.eustream.sk/
Operator Gazociagów Przesylowych GAZ-SYSTEM S.A.
Mszczonowska 4
02-337 Warsaw
Republic of Poland
http://www.gaz-system.pl/