History of Natural Gas in B&H
The initiative to introduce natural gas into B&H was taken by the City authority of
Sarajevo. The City authority took a strategic decision to develop the gas system in the
City to improve air quality in the City. Air pollution in the City of Sarajevo became very
dramatic in 60īs and 70īs, and, due to increasing industrialization; the situation was
expected to deteriorate.
Photograph of the Sarajevo
valley before and
after introduction of the gas system
Bosnia and Herzegovina has
no indigenous natural gas reserves and is therefore forced to import this form of energy.
At the time when the decision was taken, the optimal solution was to cover the demand in
full by importing natural gas from Russia.
When Energoinvest decided
to construct the Birac Alumina factory at Zvornik, which would use natural gas in the
process of production, another large customer was on this route of supply.
The Project comprising construction of a high-pressure gas pipeline running from Batajnica
to Sarajevo as well as a city distribution network was financed out of the credit extended
by the World Bank.
Energoinvest and Petrolinvest carried out the first activities on the accomplishment of
the Project. Energoinvest Company was in charge of high-pressure gas pipelines running to
Sarajevo while Petrolinvest Company was chief designer. |
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The prime contractor was
HAK, a Danish company. Unioninvest Company was in charge of a city distribution network
and all accompanying facilities.
Since 1976, the creditor stipulated that foreign consultants from the Western-European
countries should participate in this Project. The consultant for high-pressure gas
pipelines was Sofregaz of Paris and the Dutch Gas Union for a city distribution network.
The natural gas use in B&H started in 1979 and the first consumer of natural gas was
the Birac Factory at Zvornik. In the same year, the construction of the gas pipeline
running from Zvornik to Sarajevo was completed so that the City of Sarajevo was connected
to the gas pipeline system.
Afterwards, in 1983, the gas pipeline running from Semizovac to Zenica was completed and
the Steel Mills at Zenica started using natural gas.
The route of natural gas from large natural gas deposits in the far Siberia in the North
of Russia to the end users is approximately 5,000 km long and it extends across Ukraine,
Hungary and the neighboring Yugoslavia entering Bosnia and Herzegovina at the place of
Sepak near Zvornik.
Gas Route from Siberia to
B&H
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