EU Energy Commissioner Visits Bulgaria

European Commissioner for Energy Dan Jørgensen on October 28 is visiting Bulgaria, where he will meet with Energy Minister Zhecho Stankov and inspect the progress of Lot 3 “Rupcha–Vetrino” of the Vertical Gas Corridor.

Yesterday, Jørgensen was in Romania attending a ministerial meeting of the High-Level Group on Energy Connectivity for Central and Southeastern Europe.

Meanwhile, Lukoil has announced plans to sell its international assets.

Discussions in Bulgaria are expected to focus on measures following the U.S. sanctions affecting Lukoil and Rosneft and the potential impact on the country’s energy system.

The European Commission has stated that it sees no threat to fuel supplies in the EU as a result of the sanctions, although Brussels has urged member states to prepare alternative supply sources.

Following the sanctions announced late last week by Washington, global oil prices surged.

Apart from the Lukoil Neftochim refinery in Burgas, the company owns a refinery in Romania and has a stake in a refinery in the Netherlands. Lukoil also supplies oil to Hungary and Slovakia.

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The Vertical Gas Corridor is a strategic regional initiative for the south-to-north transmission of natural gas, involving Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, Moldova, and Ukraine. Supported by the European Commission, the project aims to enhance energy security by creating new transmission capacities, including the use of liquefied natural gas (LNG), from Greece through the participating countries and potentially reaching Ukraine. Two main branches are planned to route gas to Hungary and Slovakia, and to Moldova and Ukraine.