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Regulator sets November gas price at €58.43/MWh, up 32.5%, after Bulgargaz adds Chiren storage volumes

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Industrial gas pipeline valves and metal pipes at a facility at dawn Economy
Industrial gas pipeline valves and metal pipes at a facility at dawn

Without extra gas from the Chiren storage site the rise would have been 39.37%; ministers say the price is still about 40% below European market levels and household bills stay unchanged.

Bulgaria's Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC) approved a natural gas price of €58.43 per megawatt-hour for November, 32.52% more than in October, BTA reported on 2 November. The price excludes access and transmission charges, excise duty and VAT. It is the price at which the public supplier Bulgargaz sells gas to end suppliers and licensed heat producers.

At an open meeting on 28 October, the regulator rejected Bulgargaz's initial proposal of €59.08/MWh, a rise of about 34%, and asked the company to find ways to lower it. EWRC Chair Plamen Mladenovski said that, with international prices at €100-105/MWh, such a rise would be a shock for district heating companies and the economy. Bulgargaz then secured additional gas from the Chiren underground storage facility. Without that, and given higher prices on the Dutch gas exchange, the increase would have reached 39.37%, the regulator said.

The November supply mix also includes the full monthly quantities under Bulgaria's long-term contract with Azerbaijan and liquefied natural gas bought from traders after a tender.

Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Pekanov said gas prices on European exchanges had risen by 30% in the past month and by 80% over three months. He compared the Bulgarian price of about €58/MWh with about €95/MWh on European markets, which he said made the domestic price about 40% lower. Parliamentary Budget and Finance Committee Chair Konstantin Prodanov said the same, BTA reported on 3 November.

Both said the gas price rise would not affect regulated household electricity and district heating bills, which remain unchanged until July 2027, with compensation from the Electricity System Security Fund. Pekanov said two support programmes are in place for energy-intensive companies alongside a broader compensation scheme, and that the Energy Ministry would discuss business proposals to speed up payments.

For industrial users who buy gas at market-linked prices, the November decision is a direct cost increase. Asked whether this would feed into inflation, Pekanov said the government was trying to stop the costs being passed on to consumers.

Sources