November 11 (SeeNews) - Bulgarian gas monopoly Bulgargaz has said it plans to propose a 10.23% increase of the wholesale price of natural gas for the first quarter of 2017 due to expected rise in international gas prices.
The price will be increased by 29.31 levs per 1,000 cubic metres to reach 315.91 levs ($176.1/161.6 euro) under the proposal, Bulgargaz said in a statement on Thursday. The price is free of VAT and excise tax.
The company will submit its proposal to the Bulgarian energy regulator for approval on December 9.
Bulgarian energy regulations require Bulgargaz to set the gas price quarterly, taking into account global oil prices and the lev/dollar exchange rate.
The Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC) has the final say on the proposed change in the wholesale price at which state-owned Bulgargaz sells natural gas to end-suppliers and customers directly connected to its transmission network.
The gas price fell by 31.16% in Bulgaria in 2015. It had been falling steadily since the fourth quarter of 2014, when it stood at 603.44 levs per 1,000 cubic metres. The decline continued in 2016 and the price reached 281.08 levs per 1,000 cubic metres in the third quarter. In September, the energy regulator approved a 1.97% increase to 286.60 levs for the fourth quarter of 2016.
Bulgaria imports almost all the natural gas it needs from Russia via a pipeline crossing Ukraine, Moldova and Romania.
(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)