Senior U.S. and Greek officials will convene in Washington on Feb. 24 to finalize a 25-year agreement for the Vertical Gas Corridor, a move designed to cement American liquefied natural gas as a primary energy source for Eastern Europe while intensifying pressure on the European Union to finance the initiative.
The high-level talks come as the Trump administration seeks to operationalize its "energy dominance" agenda, leveraging the corridor to displace remaining Russian gas supplies in the region.
According to reports, the meeting will focus on securing a long-term transit accord and accelerating infrastructure upgrades, including a new floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) and expanded pipeline capacity.
Greek Minister of Environment and Energy Stavros Papastavrou is expected to lead the delegation, joined by Mr. Alexandros Exarchou, Chairman and CEO of AKTOR Group and CEO of Atlantic SEE LNG Trade.
They will meet with White House officials and representatives from the U.S. Energy Dominance Committee and the International Development Finance Corp. (DFC), which is weighing financing options for the project.
A central objective for Washington is breaking the stalemate on EU funding. U.S. officials are expected to urge Brussels to back the corridor as part of a broader transatlantic trade framework, which includes a commitment for the EU to purchase up to $750 billion in U.S. LNG.
Mr. Papastavrou and other Greek officials have argued that immediate EU financial backing is vital to ensure the corridor's viability.
The project, which links Greece, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, and potentially Ukraine, is viewed as a geopolitical imperative to stabilize regional energy prices and ensure security in southeastern Europe.