France, Spain and Portugal agreed on the creation of a "green pipeline" under the Mediterranean Sea, through which it will be possible to pump natural gas, and in the future - hydrogen.
This is reported by the Associated Press.
The leaders of the countries talked about it in Brussels on the sidelines of the EU summit. The joint statement indicates that the project with the conditional name BarMar is the optimal way to connect the Iberian Peninsula and Central Europe.
According to Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, the idea is to connect the Iberian Peninsula with the rest of Europe under the Mediterranean Sea, with the pipeline coming to the surface in Marseille. It can be temporarily used for pumping natural gas, and then hydrogen.
French President Emmanuel Macron said that the project may involve the creation of additional interconnectors for the power grid.
The agreement also includes the completion of gas interconnectors between Portugal and Spain.
Initially, Spain and Portugal promoted the idea of a gas pipeline through the Pyrenees. In Paris, the idea was received cautiously, arguing that the project would require a lot of money and time. After February 24, the project of a pipeline from the Iberian Peninsula to France began to be looked at as a way to support those European countries that were the most vulnerable in the conditions of the "energy war", the idea was supported by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
Sanchez and Macron said that the three leaders will discuss this issue again on December 8-9 in Spain, and there they should finalize the project, and they plan to attract European funds for its construction.
