“Will the energy transition affect prices in Bulgaria and can the agreement between the authorities and the protesters not lead to high social and consumer prices? There are forecasts of a jump in the price of electricity in the country next year. It will be equal to 10%, but it will be a consequence of market speculation. The higher price is expected to be in effect for about six months,” said Viktor Minchev, energy expert and member of the Board of Directors of the Free Energy Market. Economist Georgi Vuldjev and senior economist from “Open Society” Georgi Angelov commented on the topic.
The smooth transition envisages that the coal plants will be like a cold reserve for electricity and will be switched on when needed, for example in winter, explains Angelov. According to him, the idea is that they should not be the main source of energy, but should work for another 10-15 years.
However, according to Viktor Minchev, the dispute is currently more political than technical or energy related.
“The policy is that for many years we have guaranteed basic operation of the “Maritsa Iztok”-2 complex, which is much more than what we need,” the energy expert pointed out.
“When someone says that coal-fired thermal power plants are not so competitive with other energy sources, we must be aware that this is because of a targeted EU policy. This decision is completely political, not a market one. If these politicians weren’t there, coal would still be one of the cheapest sources”, economist Georgi Vuldjev was categorical. (Novinite/Business World Magazine)
