Russia Energy Minister: No Secret Agreements with Bulgaria

Russia's Energy Minister, Sergey Shmatko. Photo by Sofia Photo Agency

Russia and Bulgaria never had any secret agreements for joint energy projects, the Russian Energy Minister, Sergey Shmatko, declared.

Shmatko spoke during a press conference Friday, cited by the Russian information agency, RIA Novosti.

"If one annuls each time legitimate decisions made by a former government, how can we work with Bulgaria altogether," Schmatko said, adding all projects have been openly discussed with Europe and the European Commission issued a positive statement regarding the construction of Bulgaria's second Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) - Belene, with Russian participation, as early as December 2007.

Shmatko reiterated that it was absolutely untrue and impossible that there had been any secrecy surrounding the NPP, the "South Stream" gas line and the "Burgas-Alexandroupulis" oil line projects that the then opposition in Bulgaria was not aware of.

RIA Novosti further reports that Shmatko and the President of the "Rosatom" company, Sergey Kirienko, are going to visit Bulgaria in September to discuss the three projects frozen by Bulgaria's the new cabinet.

The Russian media remind that during the September meeting of Bulgaria's Prime Minister, Boyko Borisov, with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, Borisov had asked for an extension so that the new cabinet can study the information about the three projects.

 

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