War in Ukraine and Falling EU Demand Drive Bulgaria’s 2025 Export Decline
Bulgaria’s export sector continued to face challenges in 2025, marking the third consecutive year of decline
File photo, BGNES
The cabinet of Bulgaria has adopted a draft MoU with Slovakia on the Eastring pipeline project, its press office says.
At its regular Wednesday meeting, it has moved to throw political support behind the project whose idea is to link the existing natural gas infrastructure of Bulgaria and Slovakia via Romania and Hungary.
The transport corridor, once providing a link to the Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria or IGB, (that is due to be finished over the course of two years), is to ensure there are options for gas supplies both ways.
Eastring could potentially connect Slovakia with the Balkans and existing gas pipelines in Ukraine, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Hungary and Romania to the planned Balkan gas hub near Bulgaria’s Black Sea port of Varna. Slovakia's Ambassador to Bulgaria, Mari?n Jakub?cy, last week pointed to the fact that the pipeline will link two liquid markets, namely those of Germany and Turkey, and could transport gas from a number of locations.
The MoU, once approved by all countries, will create a working group involving the countries' gas grid operators to study the project.
Outgoing Bulgarian Energy Minister Zhecho Stankov described the extension of the general license for Lukoil subsidiaries in Bulgaria until August 13 as more than a bureaucratic formality, calling it a key measure of economic stability for the country.
The United Kingdom has decided to extend the validity of the general license covering Lukoil’s subsidiaries operating in Bulgaria, the Ministry of Energy announced.
The initial drilling effort in the Han Asparuh block (offshore oil and gas exploration area) of the Bulgarian Black Sea, named Vineh-1, did not uncover significant natural gas reserves, according to Offshore-energy
Starting today, the Ministry of Energy and the Energy Regulatory Commission (EKVR) are conducting extraordinary inspections of electricity distribution companies and end suppliers,
In Bulgaria, fuel prices remain largely unchanged, with the international oil market continuing to respond to tensions between the United States and Iran.
Bulgaria is among the EU countries that experienced a notable drop in the use of renewable energy for heating and cooling in 2024, with the share declining by 1.9 percentage points compared to the previous year.
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