FILE - A man walks near the business tower Lakhta Centre, the headquarters of Russian gas monopoly Gazprom in St. Petersburg, Russia, on March 16, 2023. The European Commission said Friday Oct. 20, 2023 it is discussing with Bulgaria its introduction of a fee on Russian gas transits, a measure that has angered EU co-member Hungary as well as Serbia — both recipients of Russian gas.
Bulgaria was cut off from Gazprom shipments soon after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, but it allowed the use of the Turk Stream pipeline that passes through its territory to supplyThe new tax of 10 euros per megawatt-hour on the Russian gas transfers was introduced along with a special Bulgarian law implementing sanctions against Russia due to its invasion of Ukraine. Gas price calculation is measured in megawatts as it reflects the amount of energy that a particular amount of gas brings.
“Russia takes advantage of having access to the pipelines and releases gas without the corresponding fees, which creates unfair competition,” Denkov said.