Workers at Bulgaria's Gorubso Madan metal mines expect to be invited by the new owner to negotiate new labor rules.

Mehmet Budurov, representative of the trade union, says the miners will demand a nearly full replacement of the current management, adding the new director must work on internal rules for ways the salaries are paid.

Bodurov explained he had spoken personally with Prime Minister, Boyko Borisov, and the latter had given the workers the green light to call him any time if they face unresolved issues.

Late on Friday, it was announced that businessman Nikolay Valkanov is taking over the concession of the Gorubso Madan metal mines from Valentin Zahariev. Valkanov is a former VP of Multigroup, and currently owns "Minstroy" and Gorubso Zlatograd and has a concession of the "Varba" mine.

Gorubso Madan miners finally received their overdue wages on Saturday after they had been staging protests for two weeks.

It is expected that on Monday Valkanov will formally take over the ownership of the mines.

Bulgaria's newly appointed Economy and Energy Minister, Delyan Dobrev, says that as early as Monday the miners will begin receiving everything they need in order to work in safe conditions, stressing he had talked to the new owner, who promised to immediately begin improving the said conditions.

"As soon as this concludes, Labor Minister, Totyu Mladenov, will lift the ban on work at the mines. Maybe by Wednesday, they can resume work," Dobrev told the Bulgarian National Radio, BNR.