Qatar is interested in investment in the future Unit 7 of Bulgaria’s Kozloduy power plant, according to a statement from the Bulgarian government’s press office.

Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov met with Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani as part of his visit to Qatar.

Borisov explained that Bulgaria wanted to build new nuclear capacity at the site of the Kozloduy N-plant, adding that there would be the advantage of the existing infrastructure and the well-trained nuclear energy experts.

Drawing attention to the pre-term closure of the first four units of the Kozloduy NPP, a condition for Bulgaria’s EU accession, Borisov made clear that Bulgaria had decided to build a new nuclear power reactor of the latest generation to satisfy the energy needs of the country through an environmentally-friendly solution.

Bulgaria’s Prime Minister noted that an agreement had been signed with US Westinghouse on the supply of a nuclear power reactor and that the country was seeking a strategic investor in the project.

Al-Thani expressed interest in Bulgaria’s energy strategy and asked for a detailed presentation containing information about the parameters of the project.

Borisov and Al-Thani also discussed opportunities for bringing LNG supplies from Qatar to Bulgaria.

“Gas supply diversification is essential to Bulgaria. We are working hard on the construction of gas grid interconnectors with Greece, Turkey, Romania, and Serbia, the priority project being the gas link with Greece. This will allow us to import gas from the LNG terminals off the Greek coast because the passage of LNG tankers via the Bosphorous is not possible at the moment,” Borisov declared.

The two agreed that deepening energy cooperation was a matter of mutual interest for Bulgaria and Qatar and the EU as well.