Bulgartransgaz and Toplofikatsia debts exceed €1.5 billion

The debts of Bulgartransgaz and Toplofikatsia Sofia have already exceeded €1.5 billion. This became clear at a meeting of the parliamentary Energy Committee, while Sofia residents were protesting over the lack of heating and hot water in a number of neighborhoods.

The public supplier has requested a nearly 14% increase in the price of natural gas for December. In November, the increase was almost 33%. Alongside the unpaid invoices owed to the Turkish company Botas under the gas supply and transmission agreement, Bulgartransgaz’s financial position is also being weighed down by overdue payments from Toplofikatsia Sofia.

Bulgartransgaz: Not a single euro has been received since May

Bulgartransgaz’s loss stands at €262 million, with this amount not including the debts of the Sofia-based heating utility. The executive director of the public supplier, Georgi Tatarski, said that the company cannot finance deliveries for Toplofikatsia Sofia indefinitely.

“Bulgartransgaz is not a payday loan company, nor is it a bank. We charge statutory interest on late payments. Through this interest, we encourage payment for the gas supplied. From May until today, not a single euro has been received in Bulgartransgaz’s accounts from Toplofikatsia Sofia,” Tatarski said.

According to him, the delayed payments accrue interest, but this does not solve the problem of the mounting debts between the two companies.

More than €1.3 billion in debt owed by the Sofia-based utility

Energy Minister Iva Petrova said that Toplofikatsia Sofia’s debts to the Bulgarian Energy Holding group exceed €1.3 billion. Various options for the company’s financial recovery have been discussed for years, but no concrete result has been achieved.

“An effective mechanism for managing the company must be found in order to stop the accumulation of debt and, above all, to guarantee quality service for the residents of Sofia,” Petrova said.

The financial problems are developing in parallel with breakdowns in the district heating network. During a hearing before the Sofia Municipal Council, the management of Toplofikatsia Sofia did not specify a deadline for resolving them and restoring the heat supply.

Thus, the company remains simultaneously confronted with accumulated debts, unpaid natural gas deliveries and dissatisfaction with the quality of its service. Sofia residents continue to wait for heating and hot water to be restored in the affected neighborhoods.