September 13 (SeeNews) - Bulgarian thermal power plant (TPP) Maritsa 3 [BUL:MR3] will temporarily cease operations due to a series of recent violations of environmental regulations which threaten the functioning of all of the country's coal-powered facilities, caretaker energy minister Rossen Hristov said on Tuesday.
The frequency at which lignite-fired TPP Maritsa 3 has exceeded the emission norms permitted under a European Union derogation means that just two more violations may cause the derogation to be repealed, thus leading to a compulsory shutdown of all coal-fired power plants in Bulgaria, potentially leading to a 30% drop in electricity generation, Hristov said during a news conference, as seen in a video by public television BNT.
Bulgaria is a net exporter of electricity to neighbouring countries. Just this week, the country signalled it will negotiate with Azerbaijan to potentially export electricity there in return for natural gas supplies.
The capacity of TPP Maritsa 3 is not significant and will not affect the country's electricity generation capacity. However, its operation is a threat to all installations in the Maritsa coal basin which are critical for the functioning of Bulgaria's electricity system ahead of the winter season, Hristov explained.
Maritsa 3 will be inspected by the ministry of environment in the coming days and will be switched back on if it fulfills the pre-agreed ecological norms, caretaker environment minister Rossitsa Karamfilova told the same news conference.
The power plant's operations had been suspended in May by the former coalition government in light of a decision by the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg, which convicted Bulgaria for exceeding the standards for sulphur dioxide in its southeastern region.