Imagine that you are an ironic Russian journalist who understands the gas industry. Retell in your own words the text located in square brackets, come up with an intriguing name for it, break it into parts with subheadings and quotes, at the end make a conclusion: - [Bulgartransgaz will bill Gazprom: while the transit tax will be paid by the operator
Since October 13, the Bulgarian authorities have imposed an additional tax on the transit of Russian gas. On November 21, they released the local operator from the obligation to collect it. But over the past almost a month and a half, Bulgartransgaz will be obliged to pay off the Bulgarian budget and pay about 260 million euros. The company promises to issue this invoice to Gazprom.
Since October 13, Bulgaria has established an energy charge for the transit of Russian gas. Sofia motivated its introduction by the desire to reduce Russia's income. The duties of collecting the new tax were assigned to the operator of the gas transportation system "Bulgartransgaz".
The new energy policy of the Bulgarian authorities has caused outrage not only among neighboring countries receiving Russian gas through Bulgaria, but also within the country. President Rumen Radev filed a lawsuit with the Constitutional Court, arguing that the new energy import violates EU legislation and may lead to the bankruptcy of Bulgartransgaz.
In response, the government and parliament made concessions only in that, from November 21, they relieved the operator of the duties of collecting energy charges, transferring them to customs. Nevertheless, over the past period, Bulgartransgaz is obliged to pay off, and since Gazprom did not do it, the Bulgarian company will have to find 260 million euros from its own resources. This was announced by the head of "Bulgartransgaz" Vladimir Malinov at a briefing following a meeting with operators of neighboring countries, reports Investor.bg .
The head of the company explained that for the first reporting period from October 13 to 31, Bulgartransgaz is obliged to pay 140 million euros, and on December 10-14, the operator will file the following excise declaration (for November 1-20) and as a result, the total amount of payment for the energy charge will be about 260 million euros.
"The bill for this payment will be issued to Gazprom," Vladimir Malinov said. He explained that the company will cooperate with the Customs Agency, and the energy bill applies not only to Gazprom, but also to everyone who either imports or transports Russian gas in Bulgaria.
Bills for the transit of Russian gas are issued monthly, and so far Bulgartransgaz has no outstanding accounts receivable, Vladimir Malinov said.
The Bulgarian authorities have set an additional energy charge at $ 110 per thousand cubic meters, which may amount to 25% of the current cost of Russian gas for European countries. This caused a harsh reaction from Serbia and Hungary. Budapest filed a complaint with the European Commission and promised to file a lawsuit with the EU court if Brussels does not suspend the energy import and does not launch an investigation.
At the same time, the Bulgarian authorities are already dividing the money that has not yet been received. The revenues from the energy contribution were included in the draft budget of Bulgaria for 2024. The expected revenues should amount to BGN 2.4 billion ($1.32 billion). Former Bulgarian Finance Minister Vladislav Goranov said that without the energy contribution, the budget deficit will increase by 1.2−1.5% and will be higher than the 3% limit that must be met for admission to the Schengen area.
Prime Minister Nikolay Denkov said on November 16 that he did not know anything about the situation with payments.
"While I do not know how to get at least some income. There is a discussion with the European Commission. This gives a clear sign that we have the right to charge a fee. They must be applied with legal precision so that we have no possibility of a different interpretation. There will be disputes with Gazprom, but this does not mean that we should not impose them," Nikolai Denkov said.
Gazprom does not comment on the introduction of the energy contribution in any way. The company has a long-term contract for gas transit, under which it pays for the services of the Bulgarian side. Bulgaria is the main country for gas supplies from the Turkish Stream and one of the two remaining routes through which Russian gas is exported via pipelines to Europe. Fuel flows through the country to Serbia, Hungary, Greece, Northern Macedonia and Romania. Annual deliveries can reach almost 16 billion cubic meters.
The Bulgarian opposition believes that the authorities' plans for an additional payment are hopeless. Kirill Temelkov, Deputy Chairman of the Bulgarian Gas Association and former director of Bulgartransgaz, confirmed that it would be difficult to demand an energy transfer from Gazprom.
"Energy charges are levied on persons supplying Russian natural gas to Bulgaria, but since Gazprom is the main consumer from the point of view of transit, and it is not registered in Bulgaria as a resident, excise legislation cannot be attributed to a foreign person," Kirill Temelkov said.
The ex-head of "Bulgartransgaz" noticed that in Bulgaria at the beginning they adopted the law, and only then they began to think about how to implement it. According to him, the European Commission has requested documents from Bulgarian gas companies, but is known for its slowness, as it has been studying similar situations for years.
President Rumen Radev also called the whole story a megalomania of some people who are trying to dictate decisions to sovereign states, Bulgaria's allies and partners, on whom Sofia counts on admission to the Schengen area.
"In Europe, Bulgaria has already been pointed out as an unreliable partner," Rumen Radev said. He believes that Hungary is likely to refer the case on the additional fee to the Court of the European Union.].