Lukoil refinery future has Bulgarian government held hostage

The Bulgarian government on Thursday became hostage to the decision on the future of the Lukoil Neftochim refinery in Burgas, with the GERB and DPS parties, which have so far supported the decision, insisting on an immediate end to imports of Russian crude despite the risks to the local oil market.

MPs from GERB and DPS demonstratively left the plenary session on Thursday just before the vote of no-confidence against the government filed by the pro-Russian opposition – postponing the vote on the future of the government was delayed by one day.

However, the leader of the DPS parliamentary group, Delyan Peevski and GERB MP Delyan Dobrev, insist on the immediate suspension of Russian oil.

“This is the night of signs. Either there will be a Euro-Atlantic parliamentary majority (in the Bulgarian parliament), or there will be a pro-Putin majority that will govern Bulgaria. We will not participate in the second one,” Peevski said.

“Colleagues from GERB will not participate” in a pro-Putin government, he added.

Peevski, who is sanctioned by the US for corruption under the global Magnitsky Act, did not explain how he sees the formation of a Euro-Atlantic majority in parliament without the PP-DB coalition’s participation. Such a scenario is impossible because the remaining large groups are pro-Russian parties – BSP and Vazrazhdane.

The pro-European PP-DB coalition, on whose mandate the government was elected, is trying to address the risks of an immediate suspension of Russian oil imports, insisting that this decision be taken in March 2024 at the earliest.

Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov cited reports from the special services pointing to the risks of such a decision for Bulgaria and the Balkans. The Burgas refinery is the largest in the Balkans and the only jet fuel producer in the region.

At the same time, the refinery’s management has warned that it could shut down if supplies from Russia are cut off too quickly – threatening the jobs of thousands of people in the Burgas region, where the refinery is a key employer.

BSP leader Kornelia Ninova said that GERB and DPS were twisting the arms of their PP-DB partners with the offer “either you give us Lukoil or you leave” – as there is increased pressure on Lukoil to sell its assets in Bulgaria.

No majority to stop Russian oil

A little later on Thursday, parliament did not accept GERB’s proposal to stop importing Russian oil immediately.

However, PP-DB MPs tabled a proposal that Bulgaria should stop receiving Russian oil in March 2024, almost nine months before the deadline set by the EU, while DPS said that it was willing to agree to a suspension in January, claiming that by then, Lukoil Neftochim Burgas will be ready to work only with non-Russian raw materials.

“The ‘Putin’ coalition is a fact. We will see how the votes go and whether the Bulgarian parliament and the Bulgarian government are really commanded from Moscow,” said Delyan Peevski on behalf of the DPS.

According to GERB’s Delyan Dobrev, the Burgas refinery is fully prepared to switch to non-Russian oil if it operates at reduced capacity.

“The change of oil must be done in stages. Otherwise, technological risks will arise in the refinery due to pipe blockages, explosions, fires and other accidents, which petrochemicals know very well,” replied Denkov. (Krassen Nikolov | Euractiv.bg)