They will not let Rumen Spetsov fail as a special manager of “Lukoil”. This was said in the program “Na Fokus” on NOVA by the former Minister of Economy, Energy and Tourism Traycho Traykov.
“It is good that the US postponement happened, because in this way the refinery will continue to operate and the financial flows from this activity will not reach the Kremlin. The first interests us, but the second - mainly the Americans”, explained Traykov.
According to him, the government has dealt well with the whole problem. “In this situation, another blunder could have happened - to appoint a person who was not acceptable to the sanctioning party and not to grant the derogation”.
“There were companies that were supposed to keep fuel in reserve, but did not do so, using legal loopholes. It is interesting what the motives were and what the state could have done to oblige them to fulfill their commitment. It did not do it - perhaps because it seemed to them that their motives were valid”, he commented.
Traykov said that there is a monopoly in tax excise warehouses. “Years ago it was an absolute fact. The CPC took action and it was found that this was indeed a problem. When 90% of the capacity of these warehouses, through which every drop of fuel must pass before reaching the gas stations, is controlled by one place, then what real market and competition can we talk about?”.
“I assume that they will not leave Rumen Spetsov to manage all by himself as a special manager, since it must be ensured that the refinery, the gas station chain and the aviation fuel part continue to operate in an optimal mode. These are extremely complex production, economic and all kinds of business processes that must be managed properly”, believes Traykov.
According to him, the manager's job is to retain the team that has been doing the work so far. “It is always a challenge to take over such a huge system under such circumstances. But I am convinced that they will not let it fail”.
“There should be one common goal for everyone at the moment - for the refinery to continue operating. It should also be preserved as an asset so that when the war is over and the sanctions are lifted, the owner “Lukoil” will have no grounds for claims against us and drag us into arbitration. The third goal is to prevent the money from reaching the Kremlin, but there is someone to monitor this outside Bulgaria,” he explained.