Ombudsman Calls for Urgent Hearing in Parliament over Prolonged Outages of Heating Supply in Sofia

Ombudsman Velislava Delcheva has written to the chair and members of the Energy Committee of the 52nd National Assembly, proposing an urgent hearing with the responsible institutions and the management of the district heating company 'Toplofikatsia Sofia EAD' over the numerous breakdowns and prolonged interruptions to heating supply in the eastern parts of the capital.

The move follows hundreds of complaints and reports received by the Ombudsman's Office. Residents have reported frequent emergency hot-water outages, delays in repairing faults and a lack of specific information about when the service will be permanently restored.

Thousands of households have been affected in the districts of Iztok, Dianabad, Poligona, Mladost 1, Mladost 1A, Mladost 2, Mladost 3, Musagenitsa, Studentski Grad, Druzhba 1, Druzhba 2 and other parts of the capital.

The problems have been ongoing since the end of August 2026. Despite a scheduled repair and maintenance programme for the facilities between 28 August and 13 September, numerous breakdowns followed its completion. In many cases, repairs have taken longer than the statutory 48-hour period.

Particularly concerning is the fact that in some buildings, interruptions to district heating – including both scheduled maintenance outages and subsequent emergency shutdowns – have lasted for more than two months. The problems have continued into November, following the start of the heating season.

The Ombudsman also draws attention to the worrying situation in light of figures presented by the Minister of Energy on 28 October 2026. According to those figures, by September Toplofikatsia Sofia EAD had completed only around 19% of its investment programme and 31% of its repair programme.

Delcheva stresses that the prolonged deprivation of hot water, the lack of predictability and the insufficient information about repair deadlines require a timely response from all relevant institutions.

She also points to reports of hot-water leaks from district heating facilities near residential buildings. According to residents, in some cases these have caused flooding on ground floors and pose a risk of damage to the structural integrity of buildings. This makes prompt inspections and assessments of potential risks to residents' safety necessary.

The Ombudsman recalls that in September 2026 she had already referred the matter to the Minister of Energy, the Chair of the Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC) and the municipal authorities. She called for extraordinary inspections of the technical condition of the facilities and measures to ensure a reliable and uninterrupted district heating supply.

Velislava Delcheva is now proposing that Parliament's Energy Committee hear from the Minister of Energy, members of the Management Board of Toplofikatsia Sofia EAD, the Mayor of Sofia, the Chair of the Sofia Municipal Council, the Chair of the Council's Committee on Engineering Infrastructure and Energy Planning, and the Chair of the EWRC.

The aim is to establish the causes of the recurring breakdowns, assess the technical condition of the district heating network, review implementation of the repair and investment programmes, determine the resources available for emergency work and establish deadlines for the lasting restoration of normal heating services.

“I believe it is important to prepare an objective assessment of the company's technical and financial condition, taking into account information from Bulgargaz indicating that Toplofikatsia Sofia EAD's debts have already exceeded €900 million and that the agreed repayment schedule is repeatedly not being honoured,” Delcheva added.