Will Bulgaria Have a Stable Government After Yet Another Election in June? Our Readers Have Spoken
On our Facebook page, readers were asked about Bulgaria's stability after the June elections
Bulgaria and Russia have reached a serious progress in the negotiations for the South Stream gas pipeline project, Russia's Gazprom CEO, Alexei Miller, said after his meeting with Bulgaria's PM Boyko Borisov.
In Miller's words, a joint company will be created in November. It will be an operator of the Bulgarian part of the pipe.
Miller also said that the technical-economical job for the building of the pipe in Bulgaria will be submitted by the end of next week.
The Bulgarian Energy Holding, which is waiting to be restructured for a year now, will be part of the joint company between Bulgaria and Russia
The Bulgarian Economy Minister, Traicho Traikov, has announced that Miller and the Bulgarian government agreed to set up a 50/50 joint venture for the construction of the Bulgarian section of South Stream.
This was negotiated in the summer during the visit of the Executive Director of Gazprom Export, Alexander Medvedev. Miller did not reveal more details fro the development of the project.
The South Stream gas transit pipeline is supposed to be ready by 2015. Its construction is expected to cost between EUR 19 B and EUR 24 B. It will be transporting 63 billion cubic meters of natural gas annually, or 35% of Russia's total annual natural gas export to Europe.
The South Stream pipe will start near Novorosiysk on the Russian Black Sea coast, and will go to Bulgaria's Varna; the underwater section will be long 900 km.
In Bulgaria, the pipe is supposed to split in two – one pipeline going to Greece and Southern Italy, and another one going to Austria and Northern Italy through Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia.
The project was initiated by Gazprom and the Italian company Eni, and the French company EdF is also planned to join as a shareholder. It is seen as a competitor to the EU-sponsored project Nabucco seeking to bring non-Russian gas to Europe.
As early as April 2010, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin announced that the French company EDF will also become a partner in the South Stream project. Back then he said that EDF asked for a 20% share, which, if granted, will probably leave Gazprom and Eni with 40% each.
At a recent meeting in St. Petersburg, Berlusconi and Putin welcomed the idea of having German companies join in as shareholders. There is no indication as to how the joining of RWE or some other German company would re-apportion the stakes.
We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!
In a bid to enhance its energy security and diversify its gas supply sources, Bulgargaz is gearing up for the first deliveries of liquefied gas through the Alexandroupolis terminal, set to commence in May
The Greek national electricity company, PPC, has announced plans to acquire 500 megawatts of photovoltaic capacity in Bulgaria
Oil prices have surged due to renewed concerns about the Middle East conflict. Brent crude futures increased by 0.32% to 90.80 USD per barrel, while American WTI crude rose by 0.3% to 86.50 USD per barrel
Bulgaria's state-owned energy company, "Bulgargaz," has suffered a significant setback, losing 27% of its market share as a result of a contract with the Turkish company "Botas"
A remarkable shift in Bulgaria's energy landscape has been unveiled in the latest report from the Commission for Energy and Water Regulation, submitted to the Bulgarian parliament
Natural gas prices in Europe experienced a significant spike, surpassing 2% to reach 29 euros per megawatt-hour (MWh) on Monday
UN Happiness Report: Bulgaria's Astonishing Leap in Rankings
Bulgaria: 3 Regions With Lowest Life Expectancy - EU Report 2022