Serbian Deputy PM and Minister of Energy and Mining Zorana Mihajlovic said on Monday a gas deal agreed between Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday was a great result for Serbia’s energy security and economic growth.

“Having an agreement is an excellent thing as that means a calm winter and, at the same time, economic development, which is not possible without stability in the gas sector, since our industry is highly dependent on gas. The price is good, too, as is the three-year duration of the contract,” Mihajlovic told Happy TV.

“We will get 2.2 bln cubic m at a price of around 400 dollars (per thousand cubic m) – it will depend on the oil price,” she said.

According to a statement released by her ministry, Mihajlovic said diversification of gas suppliers was the only path to a stable energy system in the decades to come, and added that Serbia was working to diversify its suppliers.

“I will be travelling to Azerbaijan – it is a country with which we have excellent relations, which is a good foundation to also discuss advancement of cooperation in the energy sector. Once we finish the interconnection with Bulgaria next year, we will get the possibility to get gas from Azerbaijan, too, as well as from an LNG terminal in Greece. Essentially, regional connectivity with Romania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and North Macedonia and utilising all possible gas sources is necessary for us,” she said.