2024-04-18 05:40:40
A powerful coalition has formed to delay the liberalization of the wholesale electricity market, which according to the Energy Act is due to start on July 1.
Three draft laws with the same content provide for the postponement to be for a period of 1 year. The first was introduced by Cornelia Ninova, and the second and third were tabled in parliament on Wednesday. They belong to GERB/SDS and DPS, one and ITN the other.
On the same day, the deputies voted for them in the first reading in the energy committee and in the final vote
the projects will
be united
According to the current texts of the law, which are from October this year, as of July 1, NEK had to cease to be a public supplier of electricity, and KEVR – not to set quotas for power plants for the regulated market. Electricity prices in the transition period – until 2026 – must be determined by the government. The final suppliers – the companies of “Electrohold”, EVN and “Energo-Pro” had to buy the electricity from the exchange, and the difference between the price determined by the cabinet and that of the exchange was to be covered by the “Security of the electricity system” fund.
The requirement for a 100% free wholesale electricity market
is a condition for the second payment
in the plan for recovery
and sustainability,
but the chairman of the commission, Delyan Dobrev, said that when the liberalization was adopted in October, the tranches were expected to come in November, but they still haven’t arrived yet.
Dragomir Stoynev from BSP was pleasantly surprised that other political forces have similar proposals. According to him, the current cabinet does not have the capacity to deal with this reform, and there were many questions.
Delyan Dobrev explained that they are not changing the deadline for households to enter the free market, it remains the end of 2025. According to him, the delay of the first step is to replenish the fund with BGN 1 billion and
to create certainty that
this model will work
And in the reasons for the draft law of GERB-SDS and DPS, it is written that more than BGN 5.4 billion were drained from the energy sector in the form of dividends for the state, which led to a deficit.
Pavela Mitova from ITN stated that the financial situation of the fund at the moment is tragic.
Radoslav Rybarski from “We continue the change” said that with low electricity prices the market is now extremely favorable for liberalization, but his colleagues had pre-election fears. And he added that the postponement means that for the second step – the exit of households to the free market from the beginning of 2026, only 6 months will remain for preparation.
The Energy Security Fund
system should have time to
accumulated funds for compensation