A disused oil pipeline linking the Greek port city of Thessaloniki with North Macedonia’s capital Skopje is being reactivated after more than a decade, following maintenance and upgrades to the infrastructure.
The 213.5-kilometre pipeline will have the capacity to transport up to 2.5 million tonnes of crude oil, diesel and kerosene annually once operations resume, according to the operator.
The pipeline is owned by Vardax, a company in which Greece’s HELLENiQ Energy holds an 80% stake, while the government of North Macedonia owns the remaining 20%.
Built in 2002, the pipeline was originally designed to supply the OKTA refinery near Skopje from Thessaloniki. Operations stopped in 2013 after the refinery was deemed commercially unviable.
About 70 kilometres of the pipeline run through northern Greece.
Authorities and industry officials say restarting the pipeline could help strengthen regional fuel supply chains in the Balkans and potentially enhance North Macedonia’s role in regional energy transit.