SETimes: Macedonia will reap benefits of joining South Stream

Access to high-quality natural gas will ensure lower costs and increase the competitiveness of Macedonian industry and the economy, experts said, following the signing of an agreement last month for Macedonia to join the South Stream pipeline project.

"This is an extraordinarily important project for us. With South Stream, the long-term energy stability of the Republic of Macedonia is practically guaranteed and new quantities of gas are secured," Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski said.

Macedonia will be connected to South Stream with a special arm from the Serbian or Bulgarian South Stream pipeline network.

Dependable access to inexpensive, high-quality gas will translate into a more economically prosperous Macedonia, which will more readily tackle Euro-Atlantic integration.  MORE