The CEO of the public supplier Bulgargaz, Georgi Tatarski, has submitted a proposal to increase natural gas prices by 5.5 percent in September compared to the current rates for August. The proposal was announced during an open meeting of the Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC), which reviewed the report regarding the company's application for setting the price for the following month.
The discussion at the regulator focused on the price at which Bulgargaz will supply natural gas to end suppliers, as well as to entities holding licenses for the production and transmission of thermal energy. The company's initial application proposed a price of 41.31 euros per megawatt-hour (MWh), but during the discussion, Tatarski adjusted his request, pushing for an increase to 41.60 euros per megawatt-hour. These figures exclude costs for transmission, access, VAT, and excise duty.
Tatarski justified the need for the increase based on two primary factors identified in recent days:
- Official letters have been received from district heating companies withdrawing their previous requests to reduce their ordered gas quantities.
- There has been a decline in the share of Azerbaijani gas in the overall energy mix, which traditionally has the lowest price.
The Chairman of the EWRC, Plamen Mladenovski, has scheduled a closed meeting for August 31, during which the regulator will issue its final decision on gas prices for September. The commission's expected ruling serves as an important price benchmark for industrial consumers, gas distribution companies, and district heating providers in the country. BTA recalls that on July 31, the regulatory body approved a price of 39.43 euros/MWh for August, excluding costs for access, transmission, excise, and VAT.