11.06.2024
Bulgaria is willing to donate to Ukraine energy equipment worth BGN 1 million from the companies of the Bulgarian Energy Holding to help repower generating facilities in that country. The sale of Belene NPP equipment is in an advanced stage likewise. Also discussion is underway on an export lane for electricity generated in Bulgaria to Ukraine to support households and offices in the winter months. This was stated by Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev and Minister of Energy Vladimir Malinov in Berlin. The Prime Minister pointed out that Bulgaria works to speed up the construction of the Vertical Gas Corridor and that sovereign guarantees for its implementation are discussed. The project is important not only for the replacement of Russian natural gas from 1 January 2025 but also as an expression of solidarity with Kyiv.
Bulgaria’s willingness to make a concrete contribution to the recovery of Ukraine was the focus of the Prime Minister’s statement at the conference in the capital of Germany. The Prime Minister emphasized the nearly USD 1 trillion in damage that Kyiv is suffering owing to the Russian Federation’s unprovoked and illegal full-scale military aggression. Thousands of innocent Ukrainian citizens, including hundreds of children, lost their lives in the war. Hundreds of thousands of homes have been destroyed as have been schools, cultural and religious centers, and critical infrastructure has been hit and this has cut electricity, heating and safe water supply and telecommunications.
Dimitar Glavchev noted that Bulgarian companies are willing to be involved in projects to revamp power plants, power grids and gas infrastructure. The Bulgarian businesses have the potential to join the construction of transport and water supply infrastructure and of residential and public buildings. In this regard, the Prime Minister noted, too, the need of Ukraine’s full integration into the development of the Pan-European Transport Corridors, which would bring significant benefits both to the economy of Kyiv and to the European Union.
The Prime Minister gave special attention to the vast damage to the environment, which likewise should figure prominently in the recovery efforts in Ukraine. Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev recalled that Bulgaria was one of the first countries to respond with concrete aid to cope with the disaster caused by the deliberate barbaric destruction of the Kakhovka Dam. Bulgaria has signed a bilateral Memorandum of Cooperation in the protection of the environment with a commitment to joint work in sustainable water management, protection against floods, water management, improvement of the quality of atmospheric air and protection of nature. The conservation and restoration of Ukraine’s cultural heritage is another huge challenge. Bulgarian experts can offer much-needed assistance to the restoration and conservation of damaged cultural sites in Ukraine.
We, Ukraine’s partners, have not just the will and ambition, but also the capacity to provide the resolute support that is so much needed for the recovery of the country from the devastation caused by the aggressor, Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev said. The Prime Minister defined the Ukraine Facility as an EU powerful tool for long-term support for Ukraine’s recovery. Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev assured that this support would continue as long as needed with the leading role of Ukraine and its institutions in the process of the identification of the immediate specific goals.
