The English Premier League Cup to Visit Sofia on February 25
The English Premier League Cup, one of the most prestigious trophies in football, will make its way to Bulgaria
The Bulgarian Energy Holding will sign on Monday a contract with HSBC, one of UK's biggest banks, for consultancy services, to help it decide how to proceed and attract new investors for the planned Belene nuclear power plant.
"With this step the project enters a crucial stage. The conclusions of the consultant will be the answer to the question whether or not Belene nuclear power plant will be built," Economy and Energy Minister Traicho Traikov said on Sunday.
The statement comes just days after Traikov drew the ire of Prime Minister Boyko Borisov after he slammed and dismissed the National Electric Company head Krasimir Parvanov for signing an agreement with Rosatom's subsidiary Atomstroyexport that potentially threatens Bulgaria's national interests by obliging the Bulgarian government to reach a final agreement with the Russians on Belene by June 1, 2001.
The plant was originally to be built by Russian company Atomstroyexport for EUR 4 B. The firm had signed a contract with the previous, Socialist-led government, swept from power by Borisov's conservative GERB party swept in last year's July elections.
Due to the delays in the launch of the construction works, stalled over price disputes and funding problems, Russia now says the project construction price should be increased to EUR 6.3 B.
Bulgaria's new center-right government suspended the construction of the nuclear power plant last year until it finds a new investor and funds to complete the project at Belene, on the Danube, 180 kilometres northeast of the capital Sofia.
The Bulgarian Energy Holding picked in November 2010 HSBC, one of UK's biggest banks, for a consultant to help it decide whether the project is economically feasible.
Six candidates submitted at the end of March documents to bid in the tender opened by the Bulgarian Energy Holding for Belene consultant - HSBC, Societe Generale, KPMG in a consortium with McGuire, Rothschild, Argil, and Ernst & Young.
Ukraine's parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, has passed a law allowing the purchase of two Russian-made nuclear reactors originally intended for Bulgaria's Belene Nuclear Power Plant
Ukraine's parliament has given the green light for the acquisition of two nuclear reactors initially intended for Bulgaria's Belene Nuclear Power Plant (NPP)
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
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