Bulgaria has agreed a 40 percent cut in the price of gas it imports under its long-term contract with Russia, its dominant gas supplier, Prime Minister Boyko Borissov said on Tuesday.
“IT WILL HELP BULGARIA’S ECONOMY”
Bulgaria, which relies on Russian imports for more than 80 percent of its gas needs, is the last of eight east European countries to agree a price cut after Brussels reached an anti-trust agreement with gas giant Gazprom in 2018.
Borissov told reporters it had been the biggest and will help the Balkan country’s small and open economy. Market analysts said it was good news but long overdue as Bulgaria has been paying almost 50 percent more for Russian gas compared to its European peers for the past several years.
“This morning Gazprom sent us the signed contract, which has the biggest price cut from all the countries that renegotiated their contracts. We have a 40 percent decrease,” Borissov said.
Under the deal with Brussels, Gazprom agreed to allow its customers to ask for lower prices when these diverge from benchmarks such as those in Western European gas markets. The new price will be valid from August last year and Bulgargaz will reimburse its clients, mainly large industrial companies and gas retailers with 150 million levs.