Bulgarian fin min gives Pernik city 1.1 mln euro short-term loan

The funds have been provided to the municipality to overcome problems with late payments and its past budget deficit, the result of gaps in its financial management, the ministry said in a press release on Wednesday.

The loan should be repaid by December 15, 2015.

Pernik mayor Ivan Ivanov was quoted as saying on Wednesday by the government during a cabinet meeting that the municipaliity's total liabilities amount to 16.4 million levs, excluding interest, of which 4.7 million levs are owed to cleaning companies.

He also said that Pernik is unable to repay old debts and its revenues are insufficient to cover the city's liabilities. As a result, waste cleaning companies refuse to fulfil their obligations with the municipality because they have not been paid.

(1 euro = 1.95583 Bulgarian levs)