Bulgarian gas distributor RilaGas, a unit of Italian utility Acegas, will invest EUR 55.8 million (USD 79.2m) in the construction of a gas distribution network in southwestern Bulgaria in the next three years, Acegas head Cesare Pillon said on Thursday.

The funds will be channelled into the development of 372 km of gas mains and grid extensions, or about 120 km a year.

The investment is part of RilaGas' strategy for the gasification of western Bulgaria by 2015, which will allow households from Blagoevgrad, Vratsa, Dupnitsa, Ihtiman, Pernik, Radomir, Sandanski and villages in the region to use gas to heat their homes, significantly reducing costs and contributing to environmental protection, Pillon said.

RilaGas has so far invested BGN 46 million in the development of a 134-km gas supply network in western Bulgaria.

The company will start supplying gas to the cities of Pernik and Vratsa in June 2011 and to Dupnitsa and Sandanski in September 2011.