The government has adopted a feasibility study on establishing a public-private partnership (PPP) for the construction of a natural gas distribution network in eastern and western Macedonia.

Public calls are set to be issued by late September, Deputy PM Vladimir Pesevski told a press conference on Friday.

With this in fact, all 80 municipalities in Macedonia will join the system set to be concluded by 2020 unless there are no interruptions in the process.

The total investment for the 650-kilometer distribution network is 150 million euros, including 100 million for the Skopje region - for which public calls have been already issued - and 50 million for the other two, the eastern and western parts of the country.

"The construction of a national gas pipeline system and connecting it with regional pipelines, as well as the construction of a natural gas distribution system, is one of the most crucial government projects due to the myriad of benefits for the country. Natural gas can be used in numerous sectors, namely in households, industry, transport, energy and heating production while also being one of the cheapest fuels. Thus, gasification is expected to significantly improve the living standards of citizens, boost the competitiveness of local companies and positively affect Macedonia's attractiveness as an investment destination," Pesevski stated.

The distribution network is expected to be constructed in four years' time, according to Minister of Transport and Communications Mile Janakieski. 37 municipalities will be covered in eastern Macedonia and 26 in western Macedonia. PPP's duration is 20 years and the concessioner will be in charge of paying an annual compensation of one percent.

"The investor or the future concessioner will be responsible to construct a primary and secondary distribution network, to invest in a tertiary network, connectors to all consumers, including an equipment for measuring and regulation, gas distribution, system management and maintenance," Janakieski said.

Minister of Economy Bekim Neziri underscored that the benefit from natural gas supply was "enormous especially from an economic point of view." Other benefits include reduction of the amount of pollution and increased energy efficiency.