site.btaRegulator Leaves Heat, Electricity Prices Unchanged for January 2023

Meeting behind closed doors on Sunday, Bulgaria's Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC) set the price of natural gas, effective January 1, at BGN 179.33/MWh, up from BGN 146.09/MWh (EUR 91.69/MWh) for December 2022 but down from BGN 204.14/MWh asked initially by Bulgargaz, which would have represented a nearly 40% hike.

At this price, exclusive of the cost of access and transmission, excise duty and VAT, Bulgargaz will be selling natural gas to end suppliers and holders of heat production and transmission licences.

The approved price is substantially more favourable than the EUR 118/MWh for deliveries in January, which is the price quoted on the European gas markets, the EWRC said in a press release. 

The regulator left unchanged the January prices of heat and electricity for district heating companies, business users and household customers.

Bulgargaz and caretaker Energy Minister Rossen Hristov have said that the natgas price needs to be increased to take account of the expensive gas injected in the Chiren Storage Facility during the summer.

The price mix includes the entire contracted quantity of natural gas from Azerbaijan, which is delivered over the Greece-Bulgaria gas interconnector and meets some 27% of the country's demand.
 
Bulgargaz has concluded three contracts for delivery of liquefied natural gas for January with traders in the region, the regulator pointed out.