Bulgaria to Start Nabucco in June 2013
(Sofia, Jan 11) - The construction of the Bulgarian section of the Nabucco pipeline will start in June 2013, Prime Minister Boyko Borisov informed at the first ministerial meeting of the project in 2013 in Sofia.
As the current head of the rotating presidency of the project, Bulgaria is calling for fix deadlines, the PM said. By June Bulgaria will have all the construction permits and mining companies from the "Shah Deniz-2" field will decide...
Construction of NPP Kozloduy's Seventh Reactor to Start in 2016
(Sofia, Jan 12) - "The first sod of NPP Kozloduy's seventh reactor will be turned in 2016," Bulgaria's Economy and Energy Ministry Delyan Dobrev said.
His statement was also supported by Sergey Tsochev, chairman of Bulgaria's Nuclear Regulatory Agency.
"The preparation of the necessary analyses and documents regarding the selection of a site for NPP Kozloduy's seventh reactor is to be completed in the second half of...
NPP Kozloduy to Sell Electricity Abroad without Intermediaries
(Sofia Jan 5, 2013) - The management of Bulgaria's NPP Kozloduy will apply to the State Energy and Waters Regulatory Commission for a full license to sell its electricity to end-users abroad, NPP Kozloduy CEO Valentin Nikolov said.
Presently, NPP Kozloduy uses intermediary companies to sell its output to end-users in several EU member states, including Germany and Austria.
"At the beginning of next week I am going to...
Bulgaria has secured a one-year extension to repay the 250 million euro bridge loan arranged by BNP Paribas to fund preliminary work on the planned Belene nuclear power plant on the Danube River, Economy Minister Delyan Dobrev said on May 7, as quoted by Focus news agency.
The option to postpone the due date was contingent on securing 55 million euro for immediate repayment of the amounts loaned by Belgium's Dexia and Japanese bank Mizuho. The funds will be provided to state electricity...
Sun Edison this week sold Bulgaria's largest solar park to a consortium of investors for Ј142m. The 60.4-megawatt Karadzhalovo solar park in southern Bulgaria began operating in March and cost Ј144m, according to the International Finance Corporation, which helped fund the project....
Shukri Hussein was only 23 when he first bought some land, with a friend, to start a farm at Praventsi, a village close to Novi Pazar, in north-east Bulgaria. Ten years later the biology graduate heads a 110-hectare organic farm with a workforce of 35.
He was pleased with what he had achieved and had no intention of letting anyone spoil his dream. At the beginning of January he joined thousands of others to protest against plans to explore the huge shale-gas reserves in his region. Their...
The proposed price for the construction of two 1000 MW units of what was supposed to become Bulgaria's second nuclear power plant, Belene, was EUR 6.3 B, not EUR 10 B, as Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov claims, Russian state company Rosatom stated on Tuesday.
The reaction of the Russian firm, whose subsidiary Atomstroyexport was supposed to build the Belene NPP before the Borisov Cabinet terminated it almost a year ago, comes after on Monday the Bulgarian government revealed secret...
Nearly BGN four million have been wired Friday for salaries of workers at Bulgaria's State-owned arms manufacturer, VMZ Sopot.
The news was announced by Prime Minister, Boyko Borisov, at an emergency briefing at the Council of Ministries building. He declared the workers will receive the entire amount of their overdue pay.
It was further reported that Borisov is meeting Friday with the Presidents of the two main trade unions in the country – Konstantin Trenchev of the Confederation of...
Bulgaria's State Commission for Energy and Water Regulation, DKEVR, has already adopted one of the Electricity and Gas Directives, requested by the European Commission.
The statement was made Friday by the DKEVR Chairman, Angel Semerdzhiev.
It was reported Thursday that EC is referring Bulgaria, Estonia and the United Kingdom to the Court of Justice of the European Union for failing to fully apply the EU internal energy market rules.
According to the EC's press office, to date...
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...
The voting stations abroad for Bulgaria's nuclear referendum on Sunday to see the highest turnout were those in London and Brussels, with 424 votes cast in each, the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry.
A total of 20 of Bulgaria's voting stations abroad ended their electing day as of 8 pm EET on Sunday, in addition to another 17 stations, that had completed the voting earlier. A total of 2 625 Bulgarians cast their votes in the 20 stations in question.
A total of 327 Bulgarian citizens voted in...
Bulgaria's first solar-powered electric vehicle charging station was unveiled Monday in front of Inter Expo Center on the Tsarigradsko Shose Blvd in Sofia.
The project was initiated by a consortium called Green Energy with funding from the Global Environmental Fund's Small Grants Program and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP).
The electric vehicle charging station, which can be used for cars, scooters and bikes, can charge one car and one scooter or bicycle at a time.
The...
Rural areas in Bulgaria are reporting peak interest in subsidized projects for the construction of photovoltaic systems.
A total of 37 photovoltaic projects were approved in the last three months, alongside subsidies of over BGN 11.6 M, according to recent statistics of Bulgaria's State Fund Agriculture cited by news portal investor.bg.
The subsidies are granted under three measures of the Rural Development Program (RDP) envisaging a diversification into non-agricultural activities,...
LUKERG Renew, a joint venture between Italy's ERG SpA (ERG) and Russia's OAO Lukoil, completed the acquisition of a wind park in Northeastern Bulgaria.
Thus, Lukoil and ERG SpA have paid EUR 52 M for the 40 MW wind farm near the city of Dobrich in Bulgaria, the Moscow- based company said.
LUKERG Renew controls some 10% of the Bulgarian wind market after the buying the wind park, which was built in 2009, it said. Lukoil also owns Bulgaria's biggest refinery Lukoil Neftochim Burgas.
In...
Japanese company Toshiba intends to continue its investments in the construction of a 10 MW solar park near the Southeastern Bulgarian town of Yambol.
Toshiba representatives have confirmed their commitment during a meeting with Yambol's Mayor, Georgi Slavov, the Bulgarian National Radio has informed.
The photovoltaic park will cost EUR 37.6 M and will be able to provide electricity for 2 000 households.
Instead of owning the solar park, Toshiba plans to sell it to local funds and...
P2 Solar, Inc., based in Surrey, British Columbia, Canada, has announced it has executed an option agreement to develop a 7.3 MW solar power farm in Bulgaria.
The "shovel-ready" project with a 20 year gross revenue of USD 76.5 M is located in southwestern Bulgaria near the Greek border and has land secured, all required permits are in place and a 20 year government power purchase agreement (PPA), is signed, according to P2 Solar.
The company has recently appointed a Bulgarian consultant...
Gehrlicher Solar AG, a German company, has completed its first Bulgarian photovoltaic project, a 1.2 MW project located west of Sofia.
The photovoltaic plant in Kosharevo near Breznik is expected to generate around 1.4 million kW/h of energy annually.
The 1.2 MW photovoltaic plant will receive a feed-in tariff rate of 35.75 euro cents per kWh, the PV Magazine reported.
The German solar company completed construction on the project in June. It is expected to be grid connected...
Bulgarian-German company BCI OOD is going to invest over EUR 200 M in a photovoltaic park in the Kazanlak Municipality in Central Bulgaria.
The solar power park will be located in three villages in the municipality – Yasenovo, Cherganovo, and Golyamo Dryanovo.
The investment decision has been finalized after the Kazanlak Town Council voted to provide BCI with a construction permit right for 30 years, the Stara Zagora Chamber of Commerce announced.
To enjoy the construction right for...
Bulgaria has been ranked among the most attractive countries in the world for investments in renewable energy projects, a report from the US auditing and consulting company Ernst & Young showed.
The top three in the ranking are China, the US, and India while Bulgaria is among the top 35, according to the attractiveness indices. This is the first time Bulgaria is included in the report along with Morocco, Taiwan, and Chile.
The report points out the last several months were not only very...
Irish company Island Renewable Energy will build a wind park in the Northern Bulgarian Suhindol municipality.
The project, which may be launched after, wind measurements and a feasibility study, involves a 90-megawatt wind farm with 30 wind turbines valued at EUR 130 M. The investment is to be made by Island Bulgaria Ltd., a subsidiary of the Irish company.
The new wind power park will cover an area 50 decares and is expected to be operational in 2014. Its construction will secure...
Irish company Island Renewable Energy may build a wind park in the Northern Bulgarian Suhindol municipality,Nikolay Nikolov, its executive director for Southeast Europe, has announced.
The project, which may be launched after, wind measurements and a feasibility study, involves a 90-megawatt wind farm valued at EUR 130 M.
"If we decide to go ahead with the project, construction may start in some three years," Nikolov said, as cited by Bloomberg, adding that the conclusive decision also...
Bulgaria's newly adopted Renewable Energy Act contradicts the Constitution and EU law, and will shatter the country's energy future, according to the Bulgarian Wind Energy Association.
The Bulgarian Wind Energy Association issued Wednesday a devastatingly critical statement on the highly controversial law, whose adoption had been anticipated eagerly by hundreds of local and foreign investors only to see their hopes for facilitated investments dampened.
"We are highly disappointed with the...
Bulgaria's Parliament has adopted a controversial draft of the long-anticipated Renewable Energy Act that seems to be designed to reign in the staggering growth of solar and wind energy projects.
Until now, the state was obliged to purchase electricity produced from renewable energy generators at high, fixed prices, which has led to a jump in declared investments totaling over 6 000 – a capacity surpassing that of the national grid.
According to the new law, long-termed fixed prices of...
A number of Italian companies have declared readiness to invest in the development of Bulgaria's renewable energy sector at a round table organized by Confindustria Bulgaria.
Confindustria Bulgaria, the association of Italian businesses working in the country, brought together key Bulgarian government figures and potential investors to explore the possibilities of Bulgaria's renewable energy sector. The event was organized in collaboration with Ice Sofia and with the support of Unicredit...
The Bulgarian Solarpro company has received a EUR 1 M order from the Hungarian Green Solar Equipment Manufacturing for the delivery of laser equipment used for the production of thinfilm photovoltaic panels, which will be sold on the Chinese market.
The order includes 3 devices for laser scribing. Laser scribing is a part of the technological process for the production of photovoltaic panels. It has been used since the 80's, for reducing the cost and price of solar cells.
"The fact that...
Bulgaria's capital Sofia will replace 100% of its electric buses (trolley buses) within a year, according to Deputy Mayor in charge of transport Lyubomir Hristov.
This means that the Sofia Municipality will buy 50 new electric buses by 2012, after it already replaced about 1/3 of the trolley buses in use with brand-new ones in the past year.
What is more, Hristov has announced that the municipality is going to build a new tram line going from the downtown to the Darvenitsa Quarter in the...
Dutch company Infinity Energy Holding AG will invest EUR 50 M in a solar power installation near the Bulgarian town of Devnya, near the Black Sea city of Varna.
The announcement was made Friday by the Chair of the Management Board of the company, Tjalling Halbertsma, after a meeting with the governor of the Varna district, Dancho Simeonov.
At present, the company is building the first part of the installation, which is expected to have a power of 5 MW. It has to be completed by the end of...
Japanese corporation Toshiba has declared interest in building two new thermal power facilities in Bulgaria's Maritsa East TPP complex, Economy Minister Traicho Traikov has announced.
Traikov was in the state-owned Maritsa East 2 plant on Monday with Japanese Ambassador to Bulgaria Makoto Ito where the two of them opened the rehabilitated unit 8 of the TPP, whose repairs were completed by Toshiba 32 days ahead of schedule. The life of the unit has been extended by 25 years.
The Economy...
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