A very important meeting has recently taken place in Moscow - that of the “Energy” working group of the Bulgarian-Russian intergovernmental committee for economic, scientific and technical cooperation. It was important not only because in addition toconstruction of motorwaysthe energy sectoris another focus of the government, but also because Bulgaria has some serious ambitions in this sphere that even cross its borders and reach a European dimension. An example in this respect is the so-called Balkan GasHub on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, which is designed as a kind of gas distribution center for the whole of South-Eastern Europe, even for the central part of the continent. Along with these ambitious plans, Bulgaria faces a number of issues in the field of energy. One of these is the threat posed by Brussels to the thermal power plants in this country, which, according to the EU's latest vision and plans, should be closed in a few years, because the coal they burn causes too much air pollution. They provide 40 percent of the electricity consumed in the country. Another issue is the only nuclear power plant in the country, which is aging and nearing the end of its exploitation life. Sofia wants to prolong it for about 20 years.

Among the great number of energy problems in Bulgaria there is one about the fate of the two new atomic reactors ordered and paid to Russia and aimed for the frozen project of a new power plant on the Danube. Now these nuclear units are waiting for a solution to their further fate and Bulgaria has been wondering what to do with them and how to get back at least a part of the hundreds of millions of euros paid for them. The project of a gas hub also remains unthinkable without Russian gas.

These and many other issues have been discussed at the meeting of the working group of the Bulgarian-Russian intergovernmental committee, attended not only by Bulgarian Energy Minister Temenuzhka Petkova, but also by Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak himself. And the very fact that Petkovahad a personal conversation with Gazprom's all-powerful head Alexei Miller is coming to show that Moscow respectsenergy cooperation with Bulgaria and recognizes its place and role in the European energy market. Experts and policy makers did not miss to discuss various possibilities for cooperation - both in the area of ​​thermal power plants threatened bystopping, gas transmission and gas supply, as well as nuclear energy, and so on.

We should not forget that when it comes to raw energy sources Bulgaria is almost entirely dependent on Russia - natural gas delivered to Bulgaria is Russian and the nuclear power plant is Russian-made, too. This is annoying to some politicians and experts and is not particularly liked by Brussels, but these are the facts –in Europe there is no bigger energy supplier than Russia. Not accidentally, Russian state giant Gazprom has surpassed the world's former energy leader ExxonMobil and is now the biggest energy company. This is the reality and the ambitions and plans for diversification of energy and supply sources are currently facing the harsh market, geographic and economic realities. Some are satisfied, while others are not. Some believe Russia is enemy number 1, but realists know very well that Russia cannot go without Europe, just like Europe cannot do without Russia. No one says that two sides should love each other, but it is clear that both sides should benefit from mutual cooperation. This is precisely what the policy of the Bulgarian authorities is. They remain faithful allies to NATO and the countryis a convinced member of the European Union, but they lead a policy of protection of national interests. Therefore, despite mutual accusations, sanctions, tensions and frictions between Moscow and Western Europe, Sofia does everything it can to keep economic cooperation with Russia at the neededlevel. It has not always been successful, though. The giant-scale South Stream gas pipeline project stopped by Brussels is a good example in this respect.

Sofia seems to have made necessary conclusions from this slap in the face and now strives to strictly comply with Brussels' regulations while protecting its national interests as in this way everyone can be a winner.

English: Alexander Markov