Bulgaria to seek to delay coal exit until 2038

Bulgaria's government will try to revise the commitment to reduce carbon emissions from electricity generation to 40% of 2019 values by the end of 2025, the parliament's press office said in a statement on Thursday.

The parliament's decision foresees that investments in national infrastructure for the storage of renewable power is transformed into a grant mechanism for energy storage batteries for individual use. In addition, half of the amount earmarked for the development of geothermal energy is to redirected to improving the energy efficiency of the building stock, namely for multi-family residential buildings, and the remainder is to be transformed into grants for individuals and businesses.

Bulgaria stands to receive 5.69 billion euro ($6.14 billion) in grants under the recovery and resilience plan approved by the Commission last year, with the first 1.37 billion euro paid in December.

($ = 0.9259 euro)