"Bulgaria can be a successful center for natural gas trade", said Svetoslav Benchev, chairman of the Oil and Gas Association in the studio of "The Day Begins" on BNT.
Svetoslav Benchev, chairman of the Oil and Gas Association: "It starts at least with geographical location. There are places to which, in order for natural gas to reach, it must pass through Bulgaria. It is all a matter of politics. If the state provides the necessary opportunities for this to happen, Bulgaria can be a quite successful center for natural gas trade.“
About the "Botas" contract Benchev commented:
Svetoslav Benchev, Chairman of the Oil and Gas Association: “It means negotiating conditions that are better than those at the time of signing. This contract was concluded when the situation was very different – there were tankers for which there were no free terminals. Many experts predicted that natural gas would be significantly more expensive. It is always good to have several places from which we can supply gas. At times when there were technical problems at the terminal in Greece, supplies went through this contract. The quantities are not large, but they helped in this situation. Such contracts allow the country to be part of the natural gas trade.“
On oil prices after the resumption of strikes in Iran, Benchev commented:
Svetoslav Benchev, Chairman of the Oil and Gas Association: “Prices have already reacted. If there is no certain deepening of the conflict, I assume that they will remain at these levels. Even if we see lower prices, we will not quickly return to normal. The price of oil is only part of the value of the product. Yesterday I also looked at the insurance that tankers use to pass through the Strait of Hormuz - they jump by 30-40% at any moment, which is completely normal, knowing how much a tanker costs.“
About the conflict in the Middle East, Benchev said:
Svetoslav Benchev, chairman of the Oil and Gas Association: “The prices are quite adequate to the situation. We are monitoring how it will develop, this time things seem a little more serious. We hope that reason will prevail and it will not lead to a full-scale conflict again. I assume that the basis of this conflict is again oil, because Iran wants to introduce a requirement that all tankers pass through a certain corridor that it can control. This is clearly not to the liking of the US and President Trump.“
Regarding Russian oil, the chairman of the Oil and Gas Association commented:
Svetoslav Benchev, chairman of the Oil and Gas Association: “The market has long perceived the lack of serious quantities of Russian oil, or at least the way it is transported - through a shadow fleet or other more specific methods. Rather, expectations were related to the supply of finished oil products - gasoline and diesel. Not only will this not happen, but even Indian products are going to Russia. The impact will be relatively small. The main products that are missing in Europe and Asia are kerosene and other refined products. Prices there have also already calmed down.“