Story perspectives

US-linked Firm Funds $1.5B Balkans Pipeline, EU Raises Transparency Alarm

4/29/2026

Summary

Story summary

A U.S. firm linked to President Donald Trump’s allies invested in pipeline, prompting EU transparency concerns.
Bosnia and Croatia signed a Dubrovnik agreement on April 28, 2026 to build the pipeline.
AAFS Infrastructure and Energy will finance the $1.5 billion project.
EU Ambassador Luigi Soreca urged alignment with the Energy Community Treaty and Commission recommendations.
Transparency International Bosnia warned that bypassing competition could endanger EU accession and €374 million Growth Plan funding.

History

Historical Context

In 2007 Gazprom and Italy’s Eni signed a memorandum to build the €16 billion South Stream pipeline, but the EU’s 2009 Third Energy Package forced the Commission to reject it, citing market-access violations. After Russia cancelled the project in December 2014, the precedent shaped the 2024 approval of a US-backed $1.5 billion Bosnia-Croatia line, which EU envoy Luigi Soreca now subjects to transparency rules.

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Story summary

A U.S. firm linked to President Donald Trump’s allies invested in pipeline, prompting EU transparency concerns.
Bosnia and Croatia signed a Dubrovnik agreement on April 28, 2026 to build the pipeline.
AAFS Infrastructure and Energy will finance the $1.5 billion project.
EU Ambassador Luigi Soreca urged alignment with the Energy Community Treaty and Commission recommendations.
Transparency International Bosnia warned that bypassing competition could endanger EU accession and €374 million Growth Plan funding.

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