Planned Demolition of BH-Gas: Group of Businessmen from BiH Forms New Company for Gas Import

The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina could get a new company for gas import alongside the existing BH-Gas, Patria learns.

The price of gas that the new company would offer on the market should be slightly lower than the price of this energy source from BH-Gas. If that happens, BH-Gas will face huge problems.

The new company is being founded by a group of businessmen from Bosnia and Herzegovina in cooperation with partners from Italy. The only obstacle for this company to start operating in the territory of the FBiH is still the FBiH Government's Decree on the organization and regulation of the gas industry sector.

According to this Decree, gas import into the FBiH can only be carried out by Energoinvest d.d. Sarajevo and BH-Gas d.o.o. Sarajevo.

A source of the Patria news agency claims that some of the highest political officials in the Government of the Federation of BiH are involved in resolving this last obstacle. A proposal to amend this decree will soon be presented to the FBiH Government and the FBiH Parliament.

- The new decree should allow other companies, besides BH-Gas and Energoinvest, to import gas into the FBiH – this source reveals.

Bosnia and Herzegovina procures gas from Russia. Transport goes through Ukraine, then Hungary, and finally enters BiH via Serbia. BH-Gas takes over the gas in Kladanj. A burden for BH-Gas is the high transport cost it pays to the Hungarians. The problem lies in the contract that BH-Gas, through Energoinvest, signed with the Hungarians in 1999. Namely, from 1999 to 2019, BH-Gas leased huge transport capacities through Hungary, although it does not use even half of those capacities, but it must pay for the leased capacity in full.

Due to such a contract for transport through Hungary, the price of gas at BH-Gas is somewhat higher than the real one. The former management of BH-Gas managed to reduce the gas price by a little over 30 percent, but the gas is still five to ten percent more expensive than the price that could be achieved now.

The mysterious company sees its chance precisely in that five to ten percent, which it can achieve as a cheaper gas price through a new transport contract with the Hungarians.

- Simply, it is enough for the new company to lease smaller transport capacities through Hungary and not pay penalties. Just based on that, it can offer more favorable prices than BH-Gas – this source explains.

Jasmin Salkić, director of BH-Gas, says in a statement to Patria that no one can import gas into the FBiH except BH-Gas, i.e., Energoinvest. Any attempt to import gas into the FBiH outside these companies would be meddling. That is defined by the FBiH Government's decree on the organization and regulation of the gas industry sector.

Salkić claims that BH-Gas is turning to new businesses and new projects, which will further strengthen this company on the market.