I agree that the topic is being overly politicized, but from a purely expert point of view, there is no way this contract can be used. This was said by former Deputy Minister of Energy Yavor Kuyumdzhiev on the air of "Your Day" on NOVA NEWS about the contract with the Turkish energy company "Botaş".
In the words of Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov, it costs 6 billion leva to our country and puts "Bulgargaz" at risk of insolvency. According to him, the case raises the question of how long-term decisions can be made by governments with a very short mandate. Vice President Iliana Yotova returned the ball, criticizing the work of the government on the energy strategy.
“I think it is high time the government found a new chewing gum. Enough with these fabricated theses. More and more experts say that the only hope in the closure of “Turkish Stream” remains this contract, so that Serbia, which is not a member of the EU, Hungary and Slovakia can receive natural gas, which will stop when this contract is terminated”, commented former Deputy Minister of Energy Elenko Bozhkov.
“It becomes profitable with its use. It was artificially suspended immediately after the caretaker government resigned, because a very large capacity study was announced in connection with these 13 years,” he explained.
In his words, if the contract is not used, there is no way we will not get into debt.
“I agree that the topic is being politicized too much, but from a purely expert point of view, there is no way this contract can be used. There is no demand for this gas, which can be taken through the Turkish terminals. I do not agree that the contract was suspended artificially. There is no way it can be used when its price is this high, and there is gas at a lower price,” commented Kuyumdzhiev.
Bozhkov explained that there is cheaper gas, but it is Russian. “The one from “Botaş” is Turkish gas, but it is also bought from Russia. 80% of the pipeline gas in Turkey is currently Russian, until the newly discovered deposits in the Black Sea start to flow.
Kuyumdzhiev explained that gas can enter Bulgaria in 5 ways. “The first is through “Turkish Stream”, where the gas comes from Russia. Everyone knows it. The second way is through the Greek terminal Revitusa near Athens. No one knows what the gas is there - it is very likely that it is liquefied gas from the USA, from Argentina. The third way is through the new connection with Greece, where Azerbaijani gas enters. The fourth way is through the pipeline in Alexandroupolis. “Bulgartransgaz” owns 20% of it, but it has not been working for a year. The fifth way is this contract with “Botas”. I don't understand why there is a fifth way, and at these prices. The unloading and delivery of gas from Revitousa and Alexandroupolis to Bulgaria costs about 5 euros per megawatt hour (MWh), while the transport from the Turkish network alone costs 9 dollars”.
He explained that if the Russian gas is completely stopped, then there will be a point in “Botaş”.
According to Bozhkov, the Turks would have to be crazy not to set their conditions, especially now that the Russian gas is likely to be stopped. “This contract probably has some possibilities of being terminated for purely technical or legal reasons”.
“In the conditions of signing the contract and the likelihood that the supply of Russian gas will now be stopped, it is becoming increasingly clear why there are no clauses for terminating the contract and why the penalties are so high”, Bozhkov added.