BGN 450 million from Kozloduy NPP dividend to support Bulgarian business

With BGN 450 million from Kozloduy NPP, the state will support 630 thousand companies operating on the free energy market in Bulgaria. This was announced by the caretaker Prime Minister Stefan Yanev, who announced that the decision to transfer the funds was made today. The money will come from the dividend that Kozloduy NPP pays to the Bulgarian Energy Holding. The funds will be deducted from the company's dividend in the coming years, Prime Minister Yanev explained.

The funds are expected to be paid to the companies by the end of this year. The compensation will be from the beginning of October to the end of November this year, the caretaker Prime Minister explained.

The funds will be allocated after signing a contract between the Ministry of Energy, electricity traders and the companies themselves, Yanev explained.

The compensation will amount to BGN 110 per megawatt hour. Initially, the amount of BGN 50 per megawatt-hour was discussed, which according to the companies is extremely insufficient, Yanev said.

The support measure complements the preliminary and additional temporary measures taken at the national level to increase transparency and improve the functioning of the energy market and strengthen regulatory control, said Prime Minister Yanev. He added that the measure is in line with the EC statement of October 13, 2021, entitled "Tackling rising electricity prices - a set of tools for action and support."

The money is available, the dividend is there and the funds can start to be paid immediately. There is no need to update the budget for this support, it became clear from the words of the caretaker Prime Minister.

However, the business proposal for over-the-counter auctions will not be accepted, it became clear from the words of the caretaker Energy Minister Andrey Zhivkov. According to him, such a decision would mean a serious violation of market mechanisms, and this is unacceptable.

Minister Zhivkov expects the first "aid" for business to be prepared and paid in early November. In the period November 1 - 15 come the electricity bills to the companies, usually, it became clear from the words of the Minister. The Ministry of Energy is expected to prepare the standard contracts for business support with the set BGN 110 / MWh within five days.