March 4 (SeeNews) - Bulgaria’s prime minister Boyko Borissov said that state-owned Bulgargaz has negotiated a 40.3% cut in the price of Russian natural gas imports based on an agreement between the European Commission and the Russian company.
Bulgargaz and Russia’s Gazprom have signed an agreement to change the pricing formula, setting as its main component the price on the regional markets instead of that of petroleum derivatives, the Bulgarian government said in a statement on Tuesday.
The negoriations with Gazprom on the new gas prices took seven months, Borissov said in the statement.
The new pricing formula will enter into force retroactively, with Gazprom due to reimburse Bulgargaz for the difference paid since August 5, 2019. Bulgargaz clients will receive some 150 million levs ($88.5 million/76.7 million euro) of reimbursements, according to preliminary calculations, the company’s executive director said in the same statement.
Bulgaria currently sets natural gas prices on a quarterly basis, with the final price approved by the Energy and Water Regulatory Commission. After March 1, the pricing will become annual, according to the government’s statement.
Bulgaria covers most of its natural gas needs with imports from Russia. However, the country intends to cut the Russian gas imports in half once the construction of its gas interconnector with Greece is completed, and Azerbaijani gas can be received. The interconnector is scheduled to be completed in October.
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