Energy in Bulgaria

Energy in Bulgaria is among the most important sectors of the national economy and encompasses energy and electricity production, consumption and transportation in Bulgaria. The national energy policy is implemented by the National Assembly and the Government of Bulgaria, conducted by the Ministry of Energy and regulated by the Energy and Water Regulatory Commission. The completely state-owned company Bulgarian Energy Holding owns subsidiaries operating in different energy sectors, including electricity: Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant, Maritsa Iztok 2 Thermal Power Plant, NEK EAD and Elektroenergien sistemen operator (ESO); natural gas: Bulgargaz and Bulgartransgaz; coal mining: Maritsa Iztok Mines. In Bulgaria, energy prices for households are state-controlled, while commercial electricity prices are determined by the market.

Total primary energy production was 10.832 million tonnes of oil equivalent in 2020, of which 23.3% was produced from renewable sources. Energy dependence on foreign imports as of 2020 was at 37.9%, lower than the European Union average of 57.5%.

Bulgaria’s power sector is diverse and well-developed, with universal access to the grid and numerous cross-border connections in neighbouring countries. Although almost totally dependent on imported crude oil and natural gas, Bulgaria has an energy surplus and is a net exporter of electricity. Total electricity production in 2022 has reached 49.4 TWh, while demand was 37.8 TWh. Per capita production as of 2022 was 7,458 kWh, the highest in Southeastern Europe. The main sources of electricity generation were fossil fuels (52%) and nuclear power (33%). Bulgaria is aiming for over 27% renewables by 2030.

Natural gas
Bulgaria is believed to have extensive natural gas resources but, due to a successful campaign against hydraulic fracturing on land, only Black Sea exploration is permitted, such as at the Galata gas field. In 2023, the petrochemical companies OMV and Total estimated that up to 13 billion cubic meters of natural gas could potentially be extracted from the Bulgarian Black Sea exclusive economic zone. As of 2022, domestic production of natural gas remains insignificant, at 17 million cubic meters. The main consumers are the energy and the chemical sectors, which combined account for 54% of the consumption.

Bulgaria consumes about 3 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas. The Gas Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria natural gas pipeline became operational in 2022, and Bulgaria receives about 1 bcm a year from Azerbaijan, with a long-term contract at a price linked to the international oil price. The country imported over 90% of its natural gas from Russia via the Turk Stream pipeline under a 10-year contract, which expired at the end of 2022. Due to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine the contract was not renewed. In April 2022 Russia stopped piping gas to Bulgaria and Poland, due to their refusal to pay in roubles. In response to this, Bulgaria shifted to imports of liquefied natural gas.

In January 2023 Bulgaria signed an agreement with Turkey to enable Bulgaria to buy LNG on the open market and for the liquified gas to be delivered to Turkey where it would be returned to a gaseous state for pumping via the Botas gas network to Bulgaria. The agreement is for 13 years use of the LNG terminals and pumping up to 1.5 billion cubic metres of gas p.a. from those terminals to Bulgaria. The agreement also allows for gas to transit Bulgaria to other European countries. December 2023 saw a Bulgaria-Serbia gas interconnector become operational, 170km long, with a 1.8 billion cubic meters of gas per year capacity, it allows gas to be supplied to Serbia from Azerbaijan, among a number of sources.

Oil
As of August 2023, Bulgaria imports 3 million barrels per month of Russian-produced oil and is the fourth-largest importer of Russian-produced oil in the world. Only India, China and Turkey import more Russian-produced oil than Bulgaria.

Most oil products are consumed by transport. Lukoil Neftohim Burgas, the biggest oil refinery on the Balkans, refines the predominant amount of the crude oil that eventually reaches the Bulgarian market as refined petroleum. The refinery is owned by the Russian multinational energy corporation Lukoil.

Bulgaria received an exemption from the EU to continue importing oil from Russia, by ship, until December 2024. Part of the terms of the exemption, was that from January 2023 Lukoil will pay taxes in Bulgaria, which it had until 2022 avoided, by paying profits to Switzerland and The Netherlands, Bulgaria believes it will receive €350m in taxes per year. On 5 December 2023, Bulgaria announced that exports of Russian-produced oil will cease by January 2024.

In October 2023 Bulgaria noted Lukoil had found interest from potential buyers for the refinery and that the current 60% tax on revenue would fall to 15% for a new owner, with Russian oil ceasing to be processed after 1 October 2024.

Bulgaria decided to bring forward the cessation of Russian crude oil to 1 March 2024.

Coal
Coal extraction remains important for Bulgaria's energy sector — as of 2022 the locally extracted coal secured 48% of electricity production. Bulgaria possesses significant reserves of coal estimated at 4.8 billion tons. More than 92% of them, or 4.5 billion tons, is lignite, which is the lowest rank of coal due to its relatively low-heat content but is widely used for electricity generation. With reserves of 2.856 billion tons Maritsa Iztok, situated in the Upper Thracian Plain, is by far the largest coal basin in the country which powers Maritsa Iztok Complex, the largest energy complex in South-Eastern Europe. Other lignite basins include Sofia Valley, Elhovo, Lom, and Maritsa Zapad. The reserves of sub-bituminous coal are 300 million tons, situated mainly near Bobov Dol, Pernik and Burgas. The recoverable reserves of bituminous coal and anthracite are insignificant. However, there is a huge basin of bituminous coal in Southern Dobruja with estimated reserves of over 1 billion tons but its large depth (1370–1950 m) is an obstacle for its commercial exploitation.

As of 2022, coal production was 36 million tons, of them 98% were lignite and 2% sub-bituminous coal. The mines of Maritsa Iztok accounted for 98.6% of the lignite etraction. About 97% of the coal production was utilised for electrical and thermal power generation, and further 2% were used for the production of briquettes. Bulgaria plans to reduce coal as an energy source from 2030, with coal being discontinued in 2038. The EU is providing 1.2 billion euros to help a just transition to phase out coal.

Renewable energy
Renewable energy includes wind, solar, biomass and geothermal energy sources (although it is not yet known whether geothermal energy could generate any electrical power as only slightly over 100 degrees C had been found by 2023 ).

Solar power
Bulgaria has a high potential for solar irradiation, especially in the southern regions of the nation. Solar plants are rapidly increasing — from a total of 100 MW of solar power installed capacity in 2011, as of 2023, Bulgaria has more than 2,400 MW, of them 600 MW were added in 2022. The capacity is set to reach 3,000 MW. The largest solar parks are Dalgo Pole (207 MW) in Plovdiv Province and Verila (123 MW) in Kyustendil Province. There is a trend of many companies installing solar panels of own to reduce buying electricity from the grid, with a similar trend on the rise for domestic use as well. For the first time in Bulgaria, albeit for a few hours in May 2023, photovoltaics produced more electricity than nuclear power plants and thermal power plants, providing 31% of the electricity production.

Wind power
In 2019 Bulgaria had 708 MW of wind power capacity, with the European Wind Energy Association stating that Bulgaria has the potential to generate up to 3.4 GW of wind power.

Hydroelectric
Generating over 10% of Bulgaria's electricity, most hydropower plants are owned by NEK EAD and located in the Rhodope Mountains and Rila. The total installed capacity of the NEK EAD-owned HPPs is 2,737 MW. They are grouped in four main hydropower cascades that include several HPPs, dams and other facilities each — Belmeken–Sestrimo–Chaira (1,599 MW) in eastern Rila and the western Rhodopes, Dospat–Vacha (500 MW) in the western Rhodopes, Arda (325 MW) in the eastern Rhodopes and Batak (254 MW) in the western Rhodopes. All of these are located in the Maritsa river drainage, though water is also collected from neighbouring basins, such as those of the Mesta and the Struma via gathering derivations and tunnels. There are three pumped storage hydro power plants, including the Chaira PSHPP (864 MW) — the largest in Southeastern Europe, with an important function to balance short-term consumption changes or shortages in the national grid.

Nuclear power
Bulgaria has two operational reactors and four that have been closed down prior to 2006. The two operational reactors have a capacity of 2 GW in total. In 2020 nuclear energy produced 16.6 TWh, which was 41% of Bulgaria's electricity generation.

In 2023, US based Westinghouse Electric Company are in the planning process with Kozloduy NPP-Newbuild to build the first of four new reactors in Bulgaria.

Heating
More than a quarter of the population are estimated to be in energy poverty, as some buildings are not well insulated. Geothermal heating of some schools is being trialled. Burning wood and coal for home heating, which is a common practice in smaller towns and municipalities, as well as some of the less affluent suburbs of major cities, is a major cause of chronic illnesses and excess deaths in the country.

Energy transit
Russian gas from Turkstream transits to Serbia and Hungary.

In October 2023 Bulgaria passed a law taxing Russian gas in transit to Hungary, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina at 20 levs (10.22 euro) per MWh, but due to pressure from Hungary, this was not implemented.

Energy Transition
In accordance with the European Union's Fit for 55 plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030, as well as the European Green Deal, the country is in the process of becoming climate neutral by 2050 and is thus working on reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by encouraging new renewable power investments. In addition, all of the currently operating coal power plants are expected to close by the end of the decade as they will become economically unprofitable, owing to the recent and future trend of decreasing renewable energy prices. In 2023, the Center for the Study of Democracy made a plan for climate neutrality. Bulgaria is the least energy efficient country in the EU.