Bulgarian Minister of Energy Zhecho Stankov announced that the government will provide compensation to households affected by power outages during the Christmas and New Year holidays. The compensation will be reflected in February electricity bills, with specified amounts deducted directly from the total.
Minister Stankov explained that households experiencing outages will receive 15 euros for the first 24 hours of disruption and an additional 10 euros for every subsequent 12-hour period. However, he clarified that this compensation will only apply to households that are permanently occupied and have electricity bills issued for all 13 months from December 2023 to December 2024. Properties that are not permanently occupied will not be eligible for compensation.
In response to complaints, Electrohold stated that all submissions are thoroughly reviewed, and if valid, customers will be contacted to provide their bank account details for direct payments. Complaints are processed in the order they are received, and there is no deadline for submitting claims. Representatives from Elektrorazpredelenie Yug (EP Yug) emphasized that no complaints have been rejected, with the evaluation process still ongoing and considering the extreme weather conditions during the outages. Energo-Pro also reassured that each claim is assessed individually, requiring the account holder to submit a formal request.
Minister Stankov also highlighted that Bulgaria has not fully utilized available opportunities in programs such as Horizon 2020 and the Innovation Fund. He noted that the Ministry’s efforts in this area have been positively received and that the Ministry is working with the European Investment Bank to accelerate technical assistance and project preparation. The electricity transmission system operator ESO and other related companies have agreed to collaborate on joint applications for these programs.
