Balgarianovinite.com Political forces in Parliament Tuesday reacted to the news of the 15-month suspension of the gas supply deal between Bulgaria’s state-owned gas supplier Bulgargaz and Turkiye’s energy company BOTAS, announced on Monday. While a member of the governing Progressive Bulgaria described the agreed freezing as “a serious breakthrough from an economic point of view for Bulgaria,” the opposition questioned both the terms of the deal and what will follow once the suspension expires.
The suspension was agreed after talks between Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara. During the freeze, Bulgaria will pay only for the gas transmission capacity it actually uses under improved conditions.
Progressive Bulgaria Floor Leader Petar Vitanov called the suspension “a serious breakthrough from an economic point of view for Bulgaria.” Responding to opposition criticism that the government was now freezing a contract it had previously defended, Vitanov argued that the agreement had been signed under entirely different geopolitical circumstances, “when it was said that Russian gas would no longer be available anywhere.”
GERB-UDF MP and former energy minister Temenuzhka Petkova said the public was once again witnessing major decisions being made behind closed doors, drawing parallels with the way the deal with BOTAS had been concluded. She noted that government representatives had until recently consistently described the contract as highly beneficial for Bulgaria and questioned the apparent reversal. “If the contract had truly been so advantageous, there would be no reason to welcome its suspension for the next 15 months,” she said. Petkova also noted that the freeze coincides with the timetable for the next local elections and called on the government to clarify what will happen once the suspension ends.
Ivaylo Mirchev MP of Democratic Bulgaria also questioned the government’s change in narrative. He said since the public had been told that the deal with BOTAS was an extremely successful contract for a long time, questions are now arising about “what Bulgaria may have promised Turkiye for such a favourable deal to be frozen.” Mirchev noted that, according to the Turkish authorities, the agreement has not been frozen but is instead being renegotiated. While welcoming the prospect of renegotiation, he said the key question was whether the revised terms would ultimately serve Bulgaria’s interests.
Movement for Rights and Freedoms leader Delyan Peevski welcomed the suspension. “We share the stated reason for freezing the contract, namely that Bulgaria and Turkiye have a common interest in maximizing the use of the natural gas transmission capacity and will work to renegotiate the contract between the two companies in line with current market conditions,” he said. “This gesture from the Turkish side is an example of goodneighbourly relations, which are particularly important for us, as Turkiye is a key strategic partner for Bulgaria,” he added.
Radoslav Ribarski MP of Continue the Change said the suspension could provide Bulgargaz with “breathing space” but insisted that the government must explain both the terms agreed with Turkiye and the implications once the 15-month period expires. He questioned whether the suspension would shorten the contract’s overall duration or merely postpone it by 15 months. “Suspending the contract effectively amounts to an acknowledgment that the agreement is commercially unfavourable, lacks market-based terms and requires renegotiation,” he said and urged the government to ensure full transparency.
Vazrazhdane leader Kostadin Kostadinov said his party had received unverified information suggesting that Erdogan had sought concessions on the Black Sea Motorway project and preferential electricity transit terms through Bulgaria as part of the negotiations. Acknowledging that the claims could not be independently confirmed, Kostadinov said Vazrazhdane would demand that Radev appear before Parliament to disclose the commitments made during the talks. The party leader also argued that the decision to freeze and renegotiate the contract contradicted previous government claims and raised questions about the agreement’s actual value. He criticized Radev’s visit to Ankara as resembling “the visit of a vassal to his master” and accused the government of conducting the negotiations in secrecy, saying his party would seek full disclosure of the discussions.
The deal with BOTAS was signed on January 3, 2023. Under the contract, the Bulgarian side booked capacity of 106.4GWh/day on the Turkish LNG regasification terminals and agreed to pay for this BGN 1 million (EUR 512,000) daily for a period ending in 2035. At present, Bulgargaz does not import gas under the agreement with BOTAS, and in early May its arrears to the Turkish company approximated BGN 300 million. If the 13-year take-or-pay agreement is rescinded, the Bulgarian company will be liable for close to BGN 3 billion in damages. By a resolution passed on April 19, 2024, the Bulgarian National Assembly assigned then-energy minister Vladimir Malinov to take action for re-negotiating the agreement. Political Forces in Parliament React to 15-Month Suspension of Gas Supply Deal with BOTAS 2026 THE NEWS FROM BULGARIA – NEWS AGENCY 2009-2025 2026-07-07 16:00:25 Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law