Delyan Dobrev, Chair of the parliamentary energy committee, has argued that it is very likely for Bulgaria to be connected to the Turkish Stream gas pipeline.

In an interview for Bulgaria on Air TV he suggested that Russia’s statements indicated that a section connecting the Turkish Stream gas pipeline to Bulgaria was quite probable.

He said that a direct connection of Bulgaria’s gas grid to the Turkish Stream gas pipeline would not be problematic in terms of the compatibility with EU law, as had been the case with the South Stream gas pipeline project.

Dobrev argued that the development of gas deposits in the Black Sea attracted strong interest.

Dobrev, Chair of the parliamentary energy committee and MP from center-right party Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB), paid a visit to the US in the beginning of May and he urged local businesses to engage in oil and gas drilling in Bulgaria’s Black Sea aquatory.

He did not specify the names of the companies had shown interest in these activities.

Dobrev noted that the consortium uniting Total, Repsol and OMV would start the first drillings at Bulgaria’s Han Asparuh exploration block in February 2016.