OREANDA-NEWS   The signing of a long-term contract and an increase in Russian gas supplies to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is hampered by the limited capacity of the pipeline from Serbia, Russian Ambassador Igor Kalabukhov said in an interview with RIA Novosti.

"The President of the Republika Srpska of Bosnia and Herzegovina (RS BiH) Milorad Dodik announced his intention to extend the current contract with Gazprom for the supply of Russian natural gas. At the same time, we are talking not only about maintaining the existing level of cooperation in this area, but also about the possibility of increasing the volume of gas supplied," the Russian ambassador concluded.

He recalled that from January 1, 2021, the GAS-RES gas transportation company, owned by the RS government, switched to receiving gas delivered to Serbia through Bulgaria from the second line of the main gas pipeline of the Turkish Stream system.

"The capacity of the existing gas pipeline in the city of Zvornik, connecting the gas transportation systems of Serbia and the RS, currently creates certain problems in terms of signing a long-term contract and increasing the volume of Russian gas supplies to the RS. At the same time, I believe that ways to resolve this issue will be found in the foreseeable future," the Russian diplomat said.

The average annual consumption of natural gas by the Republika Srpska, according to the Ministry of Energy, in recent years has been about 50 million cubic meters.