Bulgaria's finance minister, who was initially targeting rapid accession to the euro zone, has confirmed the country is in no hurry to adopt the single currency.
"We will not make any move toward the switchover in the next two years," Simeon Djankov told reporters in Vienna on Thursday.
The statement is in line with the opinion of local analysts, who have tried to tone down the cabinet's enthusiasm for adopting rapidly the common European currency, saying it makes more sense for the...
Bulgaria's Currency Board Is Super Stable
(Sofia, Jan 12) - "The currency board functioning in Bulgaria is super-stable," the monthly analysis of Raiffeissen Bank Bulgaria reads.
The experts have calculated that at the end of November 2012 the currency board's reserves amount to 15.1 billion euro, which is an increase by 2.2 million euro from a month ago.
The board's reserves have increased by 1.9 billion euro (14.4%) year-on-year, which is a surplus of about 89% to the minimum...
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has revised upwards its forecast for Bulgaria's economic growth in 2013 from 1.7% to 1.9%.
The bank cut its forecast for economic growth in October last year from 2.5% in the previous report published in May to 1.7%, citing slumping exports.
"Recovery is expected to continue to be modest in Bulgaria into 2012, due mainly to sluggish export demand. Growth in 2012 is likely to have ended up at around 1% only, with a modest forecast...
A total of 21% of the eligible voters cast their votes in Bulgaria's nuclear energy referendum on Sunday, according to data from the 100% completed parallel vote count by polling agency Alpha Research.
The agency said this meant about 1.4 million voters cast their votes in Bulgaria on Sunday; of those, 61% voted in favor of the construction of a second nuclear power plant, and 39% voted against.
The Bulgarian citizens were supposed to answer "yes" or "no" to the following question:...
PES and Bulgarian Socialist Party chair Sergey Stanishev should resign over the outcome of Sunday's referendum on nuclear energy in Bulgaria, stated Minister of Finance Simeon Djankov.
As results from exit polls come in, political leaders have engaged in a heated battle of interpretations on the outcome.
Some 60% of ballots cast answered positively to the referendum question - whether Bulgaria needs a new NPP - the position supported by the Bulgarian Socialist Party.
The turnout is...
The Bulgarian government should impose a moratorium on the Belene NPP project until an overall energy strategy is drafted, according to Meglena Kuneva, former EU Commissioner and leader of the Bulgaria for Citizens party.
She says that the fact that the center-right ruling party GERB and the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP) have reached consensus on the matter raises suspicion.
Kuneva suggests that the actual goal of the referendum is to tie the next government down to a...
The right-wing Blue Coalition has requested from Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev and Chief Prosecutor, Boris Velchev, to ask the Constitutional Court to elaborate on the upcoming referendum on the fate of the Belene Nuclear Power Plant project.
The Blues insist the Court must have a say in explaining the law before the Parliament passes the decision, the Bulgarian online news agency Dnevnik reports.
According to the law, the Constitutional Court must act on the request of at least...
The upcoming referendum on the fate of Bulgaria's Belene Nuclear Power project is a provocation made by the Bulgarian Socialist Party (BSP), according to the right-wing Blue Coalition.
"In our opinion, the referendum is a deliberate provocation made by BSP," Blue Coalition co-chair Martin Dimitrov told reporters on Friday. According to Dimitrov, the left wingers are fully aware that the question they have posed for the referendum is anti-constitutional.
As the Blue Coalition has pointed...
Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev is holding Friday political consultations for the upcoming referendum on the fate of the project to build a second Nuclear Power Plant in the Danube town of Belene.
Plevneliev is convinced that the referendum is a test for democracy and must be held.
The consultations will include parliamentary represented political parties in an attempt to reach consensus on the wording of the question to be asked.
They will be held in the Presidential building,...
The upcoming referendum on the fate of Bulgaria's Belene nuclear power plant will prove that the project is pointless, according to Interior Minister Tsvetan Tstevatov.
On Friday, Tsvetanov reiterated that the former socialist-led three-way coalition would have fulfilled the project if it was favorable for Bulgaria.
"They had the executive power, they had the legislative power, they had the presidential power...but they knew what the dangers were," he told reporters, referring to the...
The vote in the January 27, 2013, national referendum on development of atomic energy in Bulgaria will be organized in the same manner as any election.
The spokesperson of the Central Electoral Commission, CEC, Bisser Troyanov, explained at a press conference that the referendum will be held in adherence to the Election Code since the Act for Direct Participation of Citizens in the Rule of the State and in Local Rule was too "scarce" without any detailed regulations.
The voters will...
Bulgaria will "logically" go for building a seventh reactor at its existing NPP in Kozloduy, Bulgarian Economy Minister Delyan Dobrev commented Sunday on the results of the nation's referendum on the construction of a second nuclear plant.
Bulgaria's referendum, which had a voter turnout of only 22%, with 61% voting in favor of the construction of a second nuclear power plant in Bulgaria, while 39% voted against, implicitly referred to the project for the construction of the 2000-MW Belene...
Valentin Nikolov, CEO of the Kozloduy NPP, has said that a seventh unit at the plant could be functional by 2020 or 2022.
In a Monday interview for Nova TV, he suggested that the project for building a seventh unit at the nuclear power plant in Kozloduy had already attracted serious investor interest but he did not disclose details.
He suggested that there was already investor interest in the project but did not disclose details.
"In 20 years' time, when the exploitation deadline of...
Bulgaria's Education Minister, Sergey Ignatov, has resigned from the post.
Ignatov has submitted his resignation on the request of Prime Minister, Boyko Borisov, the Cabinet's press office informs Monday.
The news broke just hours after the resignation of the manager of Bulgaria's embattled and scandal-ridden Scientific Research Fund, Hristo Petrov.
Petrov's resignation was also immediately accepted by Borisov.
The manager deposited his resignation after it emerged that a probe of...
Bulgaria's new Chief Prosecutor Sotir Tsatsarov will make his first visit to Brussels accompanied by Interior Minister Tsvetan Tsvetanov and Justice Minister Diana Kovacheva.
Tsatsarov will meet with EC Secretary-General Catherine Day and OLAF Director General Giovanni Kessler on January 29, according to the press office of Bulgaria's prosecuting authority.
Meanwhile, Tsvetanov will take part in a high-level international conference on countering violent extremism organized by Home...
Bulgarian Prime Minister, Boyko Borisov, is proposing to the Cabinet to dismiss from the post the Chairman of the State Commission for Energy and Water Regulation, DKEVR, Angel Semerdzhiev.
The proposal is connected with the delay and lack of a number of administrative acts from the Electricity and Gas Directives, requested by the European Commission.
It was reported last Thursday that EC is referring Bulgaria, Estonia and the United Kingdom to the Court of Justice of the European Union...
Valentin Nikolov, CEO of the Kozloduy NPP, has said that a seventh unit at the plant could be functional by 2020 or 2022.
In a Monday interview for Nova TV, he suggested that the project for building a seventh unit at the nuclear power plant in Kozloduy had already attracted serious investor interest but he did not disclose details.
He suggested that there was already investor interest in the project but did not disclose details.
"In 20 years' time, when the exploitation deadline of...
A controversial referendum on whether to build a new nuclear power plant in Bulgaria appears to have been invalidated by low turnout.
An exit poll put turnout at around 20% - far below the 60% required for the poll, which was called on the basis of an opposition petition.
The opposition Socialists want the centre-right government to reverse its decision not to build the plant.
The poll has been seen as a barometer for elections later this year.
It was also important as a measure of...
Bulgaria's next referendum should be on an important environmental topic, according to Finance Minister Simeon Djankov.
In a Monday interview for Nova TV, he suggested that the next referendum could involve the statute of the Bulgarian Black Sea coast.
Djankov informed that he had abstained from voting at the January 27 nuclear referendum because the issue required expert knowledge and could not be sold through a plebiscite.
He claimed that the only good thing about Sunday's referendum...
Bulgaria's Parliament has adopted at first reading amendments to the Energy Efficiency Act.
The amendments initiated by the government were passed Friday with 79 votes in favor, 3 against, and 14 abstainees, according to reports of the Focus news agency.
The amendments envisage drafting a national plan for increasing the number of nearly zero-energy buildings and the introduction of energy performance certificates of buildings and building components.
During the discussion of the bill,...
Another euro-pegged government defending an overvalued exchange rate bites the dust, a reminder that the underlying economic and social disaster across the Europe's Arc of Depression is still getting worse.
Bulgarian prime minister Boiko Borisov resigned Wednesday morning after days of mass protests against austerity across the country.
"I will not participate in a government under which police are beating people. Every drop of blood is a shame for us," he said. "Our power was handed to...
Around 500 members of the Anti-mafia civic association are protesting in front of the President's Office in Sofia, prior to the anticipated official statement of Rosen Plevneliev on the situation in the country in the aftermath of the collective resignation of the government.
According to reports of the Bulgarian National Radio (BNR), the people are voicing their discontent with the judiciary, saying that the head of state is currently the only guarantor of statehood in the...
The European Union's Agriculture Ministers have gathered in Brussels for talks that are focused on the growing horsemeat scandal in Europe.
Authorities across Europe have started doing random DNA checks after traces of horse meat recently turned up in frozen supermarket meals such as burgers and lasagna.
The scandal erupted last month when horsemeat was found in some beef meals and burgers in the UK and Ireland.
Since then, supermarkets across Europe have had to withdraw affected...
The Bulgarian Parliament will hold an emergency sitting Tuesday to decide on the fate of the project to build a second Nuclear Power Plant in the Danube town of Belene.
The reason for the above are the results of the January 27 referendum on the development of nuclear energy in Bulgaria through the construction of a new nuclear power plant, which showed that the issue would be conclusively decided by Bulgaria's Parliament.
Under the law, the recent referendum results impose for the Belene...
Clashes with the police marked Sunday the protest rally in Bulgaria's Black Sea city of Varna.
Bulgarians across the country staged once again demonstrations against high utility bills, monopolies, poverty, economic stagnation, corruption, and the political model of ruling the country after the fall of the Communist regime in 1989.
The rallies, however, did not bring together as many people as previous weekend marches.
The largest one was once again held in Varna where 2 000 (compared...
The Bulgarian government will within 10 days appoint an international auditor to review the country's energy sector, stated caretaker Minister of Regional Development Ekaterina Zaharieva.
"We need a full financial analysis of everyone in the energy sector. We will work in full cooperation with the European Commissions, so that no doubts be thrown on the final report," said Zaharieva.
The minister added that this would bring full transparency in the sector, something requested by numerous...
The highly controversial project for the construction of the Burgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline has been delayed further as the Bulgarian Environment Ministry has returned the company’s environmental assessment report for the second time.
Bulgaria’s Environment Minister Nona Karadzhova announced Monday morning on BNT that the Ministry has once again refused to accept the report of the project company Trans-Balkan Pipeline (TPP) on the construction of the troubled Bulgarian-Greek-Russian...
Bulgaria expects a 10% growth in tourists, according to Deputy Economy Minister in charge of tourism Ivaylo Marinov.
In an interview for the morning broadcast of the Bulgarian National Television (BNT), he predicted a stronger summer season than last year's because of the massive advertising campaign financed with EU funds.
According to the deputy minister, the season will be successful for the hoteliers offering good accommodation and staff.
A working group is about to be set up to...
Bulgaria's Council of Ministers has approved a report on the implementation of the Action Plan for Reducing Administrative Burden by 20% by end-2012.
The set of measures was agreed upon in end-April 2010 and the report spans the period from its introduction until March 2011.
The Action Plan envisages a total of 135 measures divided into categories according to the five-component model for alleviating red tape: inter-institutional information exchange (data collecting from other state...
Bulbrokers, a local financial and investment company, has been picked to broker Bulgaria's 33% stake sale in Austria's EVN AG unit, while Central Cooperative Bank - the same government's share in Prague-based CEZ AS unit.
This was announced on Wednesday by Bulgaria's sale body, the Privatization Agency, which selected the two providers of brokerage services in a competition, which assigned the greatest significance to the offered commission after a sale and the turnover of deals inked by the...
Bulgaria’s Transport Ministry has extended the tender for the concession of Gorna Oryahovitsa Airport as no bidders have showed up within the original deadline.
The new deadline for submitting offers for the underdeveloped airport in the center of Northern Bulgaria, near Veliko Tarnovo, is October 31, 2011, the Transport Ministry announced on its website.
The same deadline has been set for the concession of the cargo terminal in Bulgaria’s Plovdiv Airport.
The news that there has...
The price of natural gas in Bulgaria should go up by slightly over 4%, announced Tuesday Angel Semerdzhiev, head of the State Commission for Energy and Water Regulation (DKEVR).
In a media statement, the head of the energy watchdog rejected the proposal of state-owned Bulgargaz for a gas price increase of over 7% from July 01.
On June 10, Bulgargaz EAD suggested a Q3 gas price of BGN 568.92 per 1000 cu m, VAT excluded, or up by6.91% from the Q2 price approved by DKEVR.
According to...
Bulgaria's gas distribution company Overgas has signed a contract with Germany's Bosch for mutual cooperation in the sphere of household gasification.
The aim is to simplify procedures and alleviate costs for connecting new consumers to the gas grid.
At present, connecting one consumer to the gas network costs around BGN 4000 and takes up to 75 days, which companies in the sector have identified as a key factor for the delayed gasification process in the country.
Starting early July,...
Bulgaria's Sofia International Airport serviced 310 866 passengers in May, 2011, which is 11% more than the same period of 2010.
The data was reported by the airport authority Tuesday.
Since May, 2011, the Spanish Air Europa, member of the international Sky Team alliance, launched regular Thursday flights to and from Arrecife. The flights are serviced by a Boeing 737-800 with 186 seats and depart from Terminal 1.
May, 2011, saw a 27 000 increase year on year, for the number pf...
Some 500 hotel and restaurant owners, taxi drivers and salespeople rallied in Sunny Beach, Bulgaria's largest Black Sea resort, against regulations set by the company managing it.
The protesters demanded the immediate resignations of the management of the shareholder company owning the resort, disgruntled over what they claim are illegitimate fees for services and access to local infrastructure.
The protest was triggered by the increased fees imposed by the management for access to the...
Bulgaria's Electricity System Operator (ESO) has carried out an emergency export of electricity to Greece at the request of its Greek counterpart HTSO because of a strike at Greece's Public Power Corporation DEI.
Thus, Bulgaria exported extra 2200 MWh of electricity to Greece on June 20 and 21, 2011, ESO said, as cited by BTA.
Bulgaria's emergency electricity exports for Greece was executed under a preliminary mutual assistance agreement between ESO and HTSO.
Bulgaria is actually...
Bulgaria plans to put out four or five important companies for privatization, announced Minister of Finance Simeon Djankov.
"Any moment is a good one for privatization, for the state is not a good husband and owner," said Djankov for the Bulgarian National TV.
He confirmed that legislative amendments are under way in Parliament to allow the privatization of "four or five companies" which are up to now in the list of firms prohibited from privatizing.
Djankov clarified the money from...
The Bulgarian Energy Holding (BEH) and Westinghouse have signed a cooperation memorandum under which the US energy giant commits to helping extend the life of Units 5 and 6 of Bulgaria's Kozloduy NPP.
The document between BEH and Westinghouse Electric Company LLC (entitled "Memorandum of Understanding for the Studying of Cooperation Opportunities in Nuclear Energy") was signed Monday at the Council of Ministers in the presence of Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov, Economy Minister...
The first natural gas will flow in the South Stream pipeline no later than end of 2015, stated Russian Ambassador to Bulgaria Yuriy Isakov.
In an interview for the Bulgarian National Radio, Isakov expressed optimism on all joint energy projects Bulgaria and Russia are discussing.
"At present all countries participating in South Stream, including Bulgaria, have agreed to the terms and we will have the project companies created in all of them by the end of 2011," said the Russian...
Three top-notch investors have purchased public procurement documents for the bid to privatize Bulgaria's cigarette maker Bulgartabac.
The news was reported by the Bulgarian daily Trud (Labor), cited by Dnes.bg.
The deadline to purchase the documents was Thursday, 5:30 pm.
The three are said to be the second largest in the world cigarette maker British-American Tobacco, Japan Tobacco International and Korean Tobacco Group.
The Japanese and Korean businesses are planning to launch...
Bulgaria's Cabinet has been right to seek to turn down a large-scale Japanese low-interest loan for the expansion of the largest Bulgarian sea port Varna, according to the port CEO Danail Papazov.
"The loan for Port Varna from the Japan International Cooperation Agency was rejected because it is hard to implement," Papazov said speaking on private channel TV7.
At the end of February 2011, Bulgaria's Cabinet decided to start talks with Japan to annual a low-interest loan previously deemed...
Ten companies, including four top-notch investors, have purchased public procurement documents for acquiring a majority stake in Bulgaria's cigarette maker Bulgartabac, the Privatisation Agency said on Friday.
The four major companies are British American Tobacco, Japan Tobacco International, Philip Morris Bulgaria and South Korea's KT&G Corporation.
The other six candidates are Bulgarian law firms Kambourov & Partners and Dzhingov, Guginski, Kiuchukov and Velichkov; Bulgarian-based...
In the period January-March 2011, Bulgaria's exports to the EU increased by 56.4% compared to the same period a year earlier, totaling BGN 5.7 B, the National Statistical Institute reported (NSI).
The main trade partners of Bulgaria were Germany, Italy, Romania, Greece and Belgium, which accounted for 67.3% of the country's exports to EU member states.
The most significant increase was registered in exports for Portugal, Belgium and Denmark.
Declines were reported in export rates to...
Bulgaria and Turkey have agreed to speed up the construction of a gas grid interconnection between the two countries, Bulgarian Energy Minister Traicho Traikov said Thursday after a meeting with Turkish counterpart Taner Yildiz.
The two ministers met in Kayseri, Turkey, where they took part in the signing of the Project Support Agreements (PSAs) between NABUCCO Gas Pipeline International GmbH and the responsible ministries of the five transit countries.
"The PSAs give better guarantees...
If a contract on the construction of Belene, Bulgaria's second nuclear power plant, is not signed by July 1, the project will become useless, a Russian official has said.
Construction has to be launched by March 2012, or otherwise Belene will be considered unprofitable for Russia, said Genadiy Tepkyan, deputy chair of Atomstroyexport, the Rosatom subsidiary that is supposed to build the plant, according to Komersant.
In November, Russia delivered a similar ultimatum, declaring Bulgaria...
Bulgaria's Constitutional Court declared the transfer of deposits in private retirement funds to the National Social Security Institute (NOI) anti-constitutional.
The rule dates from May 31, and is published on the Court's official internet page.
The revoked paragraph 4a from the Social Security Code stated that "funds from individual accounts existing by January 1, 2011, of females born between 01.01.1955 and 12.31.1959, and males born between 1.1.1952 and 12.31.1959, which until...
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