President Radev: Bulgaria to Guarantee Energy Security of Partners in the Region

Jerusalem, 23 March, 2023 (TPS) -- On his arrival in Brussels on Thursday for the two-day European Council summit, Bulgarian President Rumen Radev told reporters that Bulgaria is becoming a guarantor of the energy security of its partners in the region.

He said Sofia’s proposal to link up the gas transmission networks of Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia and Austria had received very high praise. This will make it possible to transmit Azeri gas supplies. Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev is going to pay a visit to Bulgaria. A memorandum will be signed, turning Bulgaria from a country through which Russian gas was transited into an active distributor of gas from various sources, Radev said.

The President said the caretaker government had not waived EU funding for energy transition. He put down a statement by European Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms Elisa Ferreira to a misunderstanding. This year Bulgaria is to get EUR 800 million provided it submits plans by the year’s end, Radev said.

Ferreira said on Tuesday the Commission had been informed by the government in Sofia that this year it would not be interested in starting the implementation of the Just Transition Plan.