site.btaGERB Party Suggests Bulgargaz Invite Immediate Bidding for Long-term Non-Russian Natural Gas Supply

Delyan Dobrev, former energy minister in the GERB government, said in a TV talk show on Sunday that at the first possible opportunity the state-owned Bulgargaz gas distributor should invite a bidding for a ten-year agreement on the supply of non-Russian natural gas. Dobrev said that the idea emerged at a meeting of GERB's Executive Commission called by party leader and former prime minister Boyko Borissov on Sunday to discuss the problematic gas situation in Bulgaria. 

Dobrev said this idea will be suggested to the caretaker government expected to be appointed in the coming days. 

Referring to an announcement by the outgoing government last week about a preliminary agreement for seven shiploads of liquefied natural gas from the United States, Dobrev said that gas under long-term agreement is at least 30% cheaper than if purchased "shipload by shipload". He also said that Bulgargaz has not confirmed the proposal as it cannot ensure re-gasification slots. Still, even if the LNG deliveries happen as planned from October 2022 to April 2023, the supplies will not be enough to meet consumption, Dobrev said.

GERB has calculated that with the expected supplies of the seven LNG tankers, each of 100 million cu m of gas, and the expected supplies of Azeri gas, there will still be a shortage.

In Dobrev's the GERB-suggested bidding for long-term gas could be completed in a couple of months, if started now, and if all suppliers of LNG and even pipeline gas are invited. "In two months' time we could have a long-term agreement commencing on October 1," Dobrev said. 

Later on Sunday, Dobrev and Borissov spoke at a GERB's briefing where the two strongly criticized the former power holders regarding gas supplies. Dobrev said that gas prices now are 30% higher alleging that "Gazprom's official intermediary was being used". 

"It turns out that the [outgoing] government [of prime minister Kiril Petkov], which styles itself as Euro-Atlantic, is working for Gazprom and LUKOil. Gazprom and LUKOil have never made profits as they are making now," Dobrev said.

Borissov for his part said that from Gazprom and LUKOil the Bulgarian are losing "BGN 20 million a day".