BOSNIA: SERBIA AND HUNGARY SECURE NATURAL GAS FOR

UNCLAS SARAJEVO 000038

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/SCE HYLAND, FOOKS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: AMGT CASC ENRG EPET PREL BK
SUBJECT: BOSNIA: SERBIA AND HUNGARY SECURE NATURAL GAS FOR
BIH

REF: A. SARAJEVO 19

B. 08 SARAJEVO 1722


1. Summary: Freezing citizens of Bosnia's capital of
Sarajevo received some relief from the natural gas crisis on
Friday and Saturday when Serbia and Hungary, via the
German-owned EON natural gas storage facility, provided a
temporary supply of natural gas to Bosnia's pipeline system.
Sarajevo's Mayor applauded Serbia's effort in sending gas to
Bosnia and the gas from Hungary will be enough to supply
individual homes and industrial giant Archelor Mittal Steel
with natural gas for short-term needs. Supplies beyond the
short-term are still a concern. Embassy direct hire homes
will remain on alternate systems until gas supplies are
certain. One Amcit resident in Bosnia was injured in a gas
explosion on January 10; she is scheduled to be evacuated to
Germany today. End Summary.

2. Last week's heating crisis in Bosnia's capital of
Sarajevo (Ref A) and in other isolated towns in the
Federation due to the pan-European natural gas crisis was
abated on Friday evening by supplies of 20,000 cubic meters
of natural gas from neighboring Serbia. This supply was
sufficient to provide heating to families who were unable to
find alternative sources of heating. Sarajevo Mayor Semiha
Borovac welcomed Serbia's decision to supply gas to Bosnia,
calling it a "gesture of goodwill".


3. In a second piece of good news, Hungary, via the
German-owned EON natural gas storage facility, supplied one
million cubic meters of natural gas to Bosnia starting on
Saturday. Bosnian officials expect this supply to meet the
heating needs of consumers in Sarajevo and other towns, as
well as energy needed by Archelor Mittal Steel for the short
term. Electroprivreda BiH, Sarajevo's electricity supplier,
announced a 33 percent spike in usage during the natural gas
shortage. EP BiH officials spent much of last week and the
weekend dealing with more than 100 repairs of the electricity
grid where lines had blown to due overuse.


4. Unfortunately, even Bosnia's temporary natural gas
supplies are not yet secure. BH Gas General Manager
Becarevic is now concerned that a dispute between Hungary and
Serbia over unpaid natural gas bills from last week will
spill over and cause problems for Bosnia's supply. He
claimed the Hungarians cut off natural gas supplies to Serbia
at 6 a.m. this morning.


5. Embassy Sarajevo direct-hire staff housing has all been
converted to electric or fuel oil back-up heating systems.
The Embassy held a town hall meeting last Friday morning to
discuss the situation. There were no reported major
problems. Embassy medical staff closely monitored air
pollution, which did not reach dangerous levels.
Nonetheless, Embassy staff were advised to avoid outdoor
exercise and to use their home air filters. Because of the
lack of certainty regarding the availability of the temporary
gas supplies and questions regarding the quality, Embassy
housing will not be converted back to natural gas until the
crisis is definitely past. Embassy personnel have been
strongly cautioned again any attempts to reconvert their home
systems without professional Embassy maintenance assistance
because of the dangers involved.


6. On January 10, an Amcit living in Sarajevo was injured in
a gas explosion in her home, which likely occurred when the
family attempted to turn the gas back on. She received burns
over 65 percent of her body and also has some damage to her
respiratory system; however she is in stable condition at a
local hospital. The BiH Government has offered financial
assistance for her treatment and arranged a medevac to a burn
center in Munich today. Her three children and husband, a
Bosnian citizen, received minor injuries in the explosion,
but were released after treatment.
ENGLISH