"It is abnormal that the countries worst hit by the gas crisis will receive the smallest share of the European funds for economic recovery," MEP Iliana Iotova (PES, Bulgaria) said during a plenary debate on energy security in the European Parliament.
"There is no coherence, there is no balance, there is no policy [in the Commission proposal]," a Bulgarian official told EurActiv. He added that Bulgaria will push for a "geographic balance" in the allocations, to make sure that "the lessons learned from the gas crisis are reflected in the final decision".
The official added that Sofia is unhappy with the Commission proposal and will work hard "at all levels" to change it.
As EurActiv recently reported, Bulgaria and Slovakia, the countries worst hit by the crisis, were allocated only modest sums under a Commission proposal to reallocate five billion euro of unspent EU money (EurActiv 29/01/09). Under the proposal, Bulgaria was allocated €20m for the Haskovo-Commotini gas interconnection with Greece, and Slovakia €25m for the Velky Krtis-Ballasaqyarmat interconnector with Hungary.
"Bulgaria will receive only part of the 20 million euro allocated, despite the fact that a total of €3.5 billion are earmarked for energy projects," Iotova pointed out. She said Bulgaria's economy is experiencing a "risk situation as a result of the gas crisis". The government is seeking the permission of the EU institutions to reopen units at the Kozloduy nuclear power plant, which the country had been forced to close as part of its EU accession treaty (EurActiv 07/01/09).
MEP Evgeni Kirilov (PES, Bulgaria) compared the Commission proposal to "a mountain giving birth to a mouse". It is as a result of such treatment that the number of eurosceptic Bulgarians has grown by 20% lately, he added.
A source in the EU Council of Ministers, which gathers representatives of the 27 member states, confirmed that debate surrounding the Commission's proposal is expected to be heated. Economic and finance ministers will discuss the matter on 10 February, followed by energy ministers on 19 February, he said. The 19-20 March EU summit will eventually make the final decision, the source added.
Bulgaria will hold parliamentary elections this summer, and the subject could well be addressed by Socialist Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev's campaign, another Bulgarian source said.
