Ombudsman Velislava Delcheva has asked the Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC) to carry out an emergency inspection of Sofia’s Toplofikatsiya District Heating Company and establish the causes of the numerous breakdowns in the eastern districts of the Bulgarian capital, the Ombudsman Institution’s press office said here on Wednesday.
Many households in eastern Sofia continue to be without hot water for periods significantly longer than the legally prescribed 48-hour period for repairing breakdowns. At the same time, citizens have alerted the ombudsman about leaks from the district heating network and flooded basements and ground floors – problems they had reported months before the current breakdowns.
Complaints have been received from residents of Mladost, Iztok, Izgrev, Dianabad, Lozenets, Musagenitsa, Studentski Grad, Hristo Smirnenski, Geo Milev, Poligona and Druzhba.
“I would also like to draw your attention to the need to accurately document temporary interruptions in district heating services and establish a procedure ensuring that this information is accessible to household customers and can serve as evidence, including for the protection of their rights through legal proceedings,” Delcheva said.
The Ombudsman called on Sofia District Heating Company to make specific commitments to urgently repair leaks from its facilities that are flooding residential buildings and worsening the quality of district heating and water and sewerage services.
She also stressed the need to review the General Terms and Conditions for the sale of heat energy for household needs by district heating companies. The aim is to ensure that customers receive compensation when, through the fault of the companies, breakdowns in district heating facilities and substations are not repaired within the legally prescribed 48-hour period.
“I believe that in such cases the mechanism for calculating and paying compensation should be automatic – district heating companies should be required to apply it without each customer having to submit an individual application to receive the compensation,” the Ombudsman added.
Delcheva also contacted Sofia Mayor Vasil Terziev, Sofia Municipal Council Chair Tsvetomir Petrov and the chairs of the relevant municipal committees, calling for a thorough review of the implementation of Toplofikatsiya’s investment and repair programme against the company’s business plan, approved by the Sofia Municipal Council.
Earlier this month the Ombudsman also approached the Energy Minister on the issue, calling for both an emergency inspection and amendments to the Energy Act to provide better protection for district heating customers in cases of prolonged service interruptions. At the time, she called for considering an amendment to the Energy Act, so that district heating network operators would be required to pay compensation to affected end customers for periods exceeding 48 hours when an unplanned interruption in supply lasts more than 48 hours in total within a 72-hour period.
Ombudsman Calls for Urgent Inspection of Sofia District Heating Company over Frequent Breakdowns 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-09-30 08:27:00
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