Bulgarians Join Balkan Protest Against Soaring Food Prices
Bulgaria has joined Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro in organizing protests against rising food prices
Prime Minister Boyko Borisov has expressed hope that the planned Bulgarian-Russian working groups on joint energy projects will quickly propose solutions to Belene and South Stream issues acceptable to both sides.
Borisov and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday discussed over the phone the establishment of working groups to decide what to do about joint energy projects. These include the abandoned projects for the construction of South Stream gas pipeline and Belene nuclear power plant.
"The ruling requires Bulgaria to pay and take the two reactors. In this situation, if the political class in Bulgaria has better solutions, I’ll be happy to hear them,” Borisov told reporters during a visit to the Black Sea city of Varna on Saturday.
Borisov referred to a June ruling of the International Court of Arbitration which requires Bulgarian state-owned electricity company NEK to pay EUR 550 M to Russia’s Atomstroyexport as compensation for the equipment already manufactured for Belene.
"It will be irresponsible to people if anyone tells me that we have to pay about BGN 3 B and take two reactors and put them into a museum. We’ll find it difficult, if not impossible, to sell them," Borisov said.
Borisov visited Iran last month and said that the country’’s President Hassan Rouhani would ask energy experts to study a possible purchase of Russian-made reactors manufactured for Belene.
A sale of those reactors to Iran looks unlikely as Russia and Iran signed a deal in 2014 under which Russia will build eight reactors for Iran. Any deal for the sale of the reactors manufactured for Belene will require the consent of the Russian producer.
A possible option for Belene will be to transform the project into a private venture, with small participation from the government, Borisov said.
He added that steps have been made to find investors for Balkan Gas Hub, a future distribution centre on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast for delivering gas to Europe received from various sources.
For the ninth consecutive year (excluding 2022), the electrical industry remains the largest contributor to Bulgaria's exports, as reported by the Bulgarian Association of Electrical Engineering and Electronics (BASEL)
European natural gas prices have climbed above €55 per megawatt-hour for the first time in 16 months, driven by colder temperatures across the continent that are increasing demand for heating fuel
Serbian oil and gas company NIS, controlled by Russia’s Gazprom, is considering exiting its operations in Bulgaria and Romania due to ongoing difficulties in both markets
The Russian company Lukoil initiated the process of selling its Bulgarian assets in June last year, Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov announced during a parliamentary hearing
In 2023, 10.6% of the population in the European Union reported being unable to keep their homes adequately warm
The Bulgarian government has announced a program to compensate businesses and non-household electricity subscribers for high energy costs until the end of March
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