The condition that US companies AES and ConturGlobal put that owners respectively of Maritsa East 1 and 3, to negotiate a reduction in the price of electricity produced from them have already been fulfilled. Last week, the Chairman of the State Energy and Water Regulatory Commission Svetla Todorova said that the regulator has revoked its decision of June 2014. It required the National Electricity Company (NEC) and the owners of the two thermal power plants to start negotiations to amend the agreements concluded on 13 June 2001. Specific parameters were even set – reducing the price of electricity from AES – 3Cand Maritza East 1 by 30%, and the energy of one unit of the plant to be sold on the open market. For Contour Global Maritza East 3 wanted cheapening of 20% and two blocks to debut on the open market.
The total for positive effect for the country for the entire duration of the contracts, if such a change was introduced, would be 5.4 billion levs (TPP AES – 3C Maritza East 1 – 3.5 billion levs, and TPP Contour Global Maritza East 3 – 1.8 billion levs), was then argued by the regulator headed by Boyan Boev. Simultaneously, the regulator has proposed to the Minister of Finance to refer to the European Commission on the need for revision of the terms of the agreements, arguing that they are not compatible with the new requirements imposed on the community for competitive market conditions.
Logically, AES and ConturGlobal appealed this decision to the Supreme Administrative Court and later said they were ready to sit down at the negotiating table, but not under pressure. It now remains to be seen whether Americans will fulfill their promise.
About a month ago, it became clear that the two companies have offered the state an option to cancellation of their contracts. Back in May they asked to use one of the 400 kV transmission lines of the Sakar state-owned Electricity System Operator (ESO) to export half of the electricity produced in their plants to Turkey. Representatives of AES and ConturGlobal say that even now there was a particular interest among Turkish companies to such transactions, as the prices of the power plants for the foreign markets were more than competitive. According to them, there were no technical barriers to the provision of such direct exports.
Such a move will really have a very positive effect. First, the price of electricity for households will no longer include the expensive amounts of electricity currently NEC is required to purchase. Thus the market will be able to breathe and there will be no need to temporarily shut down power plants, as in the past two years, because of overcapacity power. The energy sector will also get fresh money from exports, which will help fill the financial gap without having to again raise electricity prices for households. What is still awaited is the position on the issue of the new energy minister – Temenuzhka Petkova.
The rescheduling of agreements with both plants was one of the measures in the package to stabilize the sector proposed by the caretaker economy minister Vasil Shtonov. He gave a particular solution – the contracts to be extended and the purchase price to be lowered.
