There will be intermittent snowfall and rainfall over Bulgaria over the course of a week, the head of the country's weather service has said.

Sub-zero temperatures will last, but snow will only fall in Southeastern Bulgaria later in the afternoon, Hristomir Branzov, head of the National Institute for Meteorology and Hydrology, has said at a regular briefing of a crisis team dealing with the aftermath of a cold snap.

It was the southeastern area where, along with the far northeast, weather conditions have had the hardest impact on traffic and electricity supply, with many roads closed and more than a hundred villages and towns cut off from power.

Thursday will be sunny in most of Bulgaria, with thermometers expected to hit values above 0 degrees Celsius, reaching 3-4 degrees on Friday, Branzov has said.

On Saturday, however, a new cold front will sweep through Bulgaria from the northwest, causing rainfall across the country that will gradually turn into snow, forming ice on roads as temperatures fall again.

Clouds will disperse by Sunday, but the beginning of next week will also be marked by snow starting from the Rhodope Mountains and spreading throughout the country.

This time around, however, snowfall will be short-lived and is expected to stop by Tuesday, January 17, Branzov has added.