site.btaEmployers Association Calls on Government to Take Urgent Measures against High Energy Prices

The Association of the Organizations of Bulgarian Employers (AOBE) Thursday sent a letter to Prime Minister Kiril Petkov claiming that the Government has failed to fulfill its commitments made on March 14 to compensate businesses for high energy prices. The letter, a copy of which was sent to Ministers Korneliya Ninova of Economy and Alexander Nikolov of Energy, calls for urgent measures to overcome the problems on the energy market. 

On March 14, following a meeting with the AOBE, the Government committed to extend the compensation mechanism until the end of April 2022 with a raised ceiling of 300 lv/MWh and to elaborate a mechanism guaranteeing long-term electricity supply at accessible prices for the 633,000 users on the free market, planned to go into operation on May 1, 2022. The Cabinet also said that AOBE representatives would be invited to a working group on the matter, but such an invitation has not been received yet and there is no information about work being done on the matter, the AOBE said.

At the same time, the forecast drop in energy prices is not happening, the AOBE also said. "May 1 draws near, and there is no readiness to implement the promise you made us. Businesses across the entire country do not know what awaits them in 14 days! There is no time, and there is obviously no readiness on the Government's part to fulfill the commitment made," the letter reads.

The AOBE wants the Council of Ministers to immediately extend the existing mechanism for compensating businesses with a reference price of 185.59 lv/MWh and a ceiling of 300 lv/MWh, until a working decision is found to stabilize the market with the employers' approval. Unless the Cabinet takes immediate action, the AOBE will hold a national protest in early May demanding the Government's resignation, it transpires from the letter.