Bulgaria should start renegotiations for the Recovery Plan, specifically the part about reducing carbon emissions from coal-fired power plants, which should be allowed to operate until 2038, a huge multi-party majority in the parliament decided on Thursday.
The proposal was made by the conservative party of former Prime Minister Boyko Borisov (GERB), which is part of the European People’s Party. It was approved on Thursday with 187 votes “for”, two “against” – from “We continue the change” – and nine “abstentions”.
Such a political initiative could be seen as doomed and instead aimed at internal use since the Commission already transferred the first tranche of €1.4 billion from the Recovery funds to the Bulgarian government. Bulgaria expects another €4.7 billion, but the country does not currently fulfil most of its commitments to adopt anti-corruption and judicial reform.
During the political debates in the parliament, there was a demonstration of the two largest Bulgarian unions for preserving the work of the thermal power plants (TPP) in the Maritsa river basin.
Acting Energy Minister Rosen Hristov was in support of GERB and even wondered how the Commission approved the Bulgarian Recovery Plan submitted by the previous government of Kiril Petkov. It is committed to reducing carbon emissions at ten Bulgarian thermal power plants by more than 40% by 2026 compared to 2019 levels.
GERB and the minister claim that such a promise contradicts the requirements of the European Commission to reduce emissions by 55% by 2030 compared to the levels of 1990. Thus, Bulgaria has already fulfilled its commitments and coal plants can continue operating without restrictions.
The Bulgarian coal plants will be able to operate until 2038 at the latest. This has been commented on more than once by the government of “We continue the change”, and similar comments were also given by the GERB government two years ago.
The Bulgarian Recovery Plan has no schedule for closing TPPs, only one for reducing their emissions by specific years. The Energy Ministry must decide which plant to reduce its emissions and by how much. Bulgaria will now be asked by the Commission to delete the schedule for reducing carbon emissions and for the country’s goals to be covered by the entire economy and transport.
Bulgaria is currently governed by a caretaker government appointed by President Rumen Radev. The poorest country in the EU has not been able to get out of the severe political crisis for more than two years, which has provoked the parties to find themselves in permanent pre-election mode.
(Krassen Nikolov | EURACTIV.bg)
Source: euractiv.com
