Bulgaria on Monday demanded electricity supplies from Romania but the request was refused, local media quote Romanian officials as saying.

Problems in the electricity distrubution system, linked to harsh weather conditions and increased power consumption, triggered authorities to sent the request, according to the Bulgarian National Television.

Private NOVA TV broadcaster says that according to Romania's Energy Minister Florian-Toma Petcu, Bucharest did not grant the request as its own electricity consumption had increased due to the bad weather.

"Taking into account the delicate situation in which Romania could be placed, we did not take the commitment and said we were unable to help," NOVA quotes Petcu as saying citing the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA).

Bulgaria's move was a matter of routine in such situations, according to the Electricity System Operator (ESO), the company in charge of planning, coordinating and controlling the power system.

ESO has added the usual electricity exports are ongoing despite the crisis.

According to bTV broadcaster, as of 19:00 local time (EET) on Monday consumption of power in Bulgaria peaked to 7700 MWh in the busy hours, an unprecedented amount for the past 20 years.

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