Bosnia pivots to Croatian LNG pipeline with US backing
The law adopted by the upper house of parliament of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina provides for constructing the "southern connection," a gas pipeline intended to deliver gas to the country from Croatia.
According to a statement from the House of Peoples of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (an administrative part of BiH), the House passed a law on Thursday enabling gas pipeline construction. The pipeline aims to reduce the country's complete dependence on Russian gas.
Currently, Bosnia and Herzegovina is supplied exclusively with Russian gas, which enters the country through the eastern border near Zvornik. The country is situated within Republika Srpska, a predominantly Serb autonomous region.
The planned southern connection seeks to link BiH with the LNG terminal on the Croatian island of Krk, thereby connecting with European gas pipelines. The pipeline, which will span about 112 miles, is valued at approximately 110 million dollars and will be constructed at a cost of roughly 110 million dollars.
With the support of the USA
The Croatian Democratic Union in BiH (HDZ BiH), the most significant political group of Bosnian Croats, had opposed the construction for years. Its leaders were reluctant to have the project managed by BH Gas, a company owned by the government of the Federation of BiH.
Amendments to the company's statute, adopted in January, allowed subsidiary companies to have their headquarters outside of Sarajevo, achieving a compromise.
The southern pipeline project received strong support from the USA, which repeatedly urged HDZ BiH to cease obstructing its implementation.
