site.btaBulgaria Waiting for Egypt to Sign LNG Agreement

Bulgarian caretaker Energy Minister Rossen Hristov told the Daily News Egypt online outlet that Bulgaria is waiting for Egypt to conclude the bilateral agreement on export of liquified natural gas to Bulgaria.

Sofia expects the agreement to be activated as soon as possible and is seeking to strengthen its energy cooperation with Cairo, Hristov said during the 27th UN Climate Change Conference (COP27 Summit), which is being held in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.

In October, Egypt signed a memorandum of understanding with Bulgaria to export LNG to Bulgaria. At the time, the Bulgarian minister expressed his country’s desire for Egypt to be among the important natural gas sources for Bulgaria against the backdrop of the remarkable historical relations between the two countries and willingness to extend bilateral cooperation, in particular in the field of energy.

During Hristov’s visit to Egypt at the end of October, both sides agreed to sign a memorandum of understanding to develop technical, scientific, technological and commercial cooperation in the oil and gas industry to achieve mutual benefit.

In September, Bulgarian President Rumen Radev and his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah El-Sisi discussed ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the energy sector, Daily News Egypt also reported.

Bulgaria and Egypt have traditionally good bilateral political relations, the Bulgarian Foreign Ministry said on its official website. Egypt was the first Arab country to establish diplomatic relations with Bulgaria on February 3, 1926, and is Bulgaria’s largest trade and economic partner in the Middle East and Africa.

Bulgarian-Egyptian relations are based on a broad regulatory framework, which includes 23 documents. There is a well-developed legal framework in the fields of agriculture, trade, economy and military cooperation between both sides.