New State Utility Head Wanted in Bulgaria

NEK's executive director Krasimir Parvanov has been accused of bowing to pressure from Russia's Atomstroyexport and single-handedly committing Bulgaria to Belene nuclear project. Photo by Sofia Photo Agency

Bulgaria will launch on Tuesday or Wednesday a contest for a successor to the head of the National Electric Company NEK, who was fired in the wake of a scandal over Belene nuclear plant project.

"I sincerely hope that many and high-skilled candidates will apply for the post," Energy and Economy Minister Traicho Traikov said on Tuesday.

He explained that the proposal for the criteria to judge the applicants have been presented to him on Monday evening.

Krasimir Parvanov, head of Bulgaria's National Electric Company NEK, was sacked in the middle of April following objections to a deal he signed with Russian partners for the nuclear power plant project in Belene.

The formal motives for dismissing Krasimir Parvanov as the CEO of NEK are "a brutal violation of hierarchical rules, and a failure to observe the approved procedure for holding negotiations."

Mihail Andonov, current chief accountant of NEK, was selected to become its acting CEO. Deputy Economy Minister in charge of energy, Mariy Kosev, will take Anodonov's place on the NEK Board of Directors.

Bulgaria's main electricity utility NEK and Russia's state-owned Rosatom Corp. have been in talks since the beginning of the month on extending an accord to build a 2,000 megawatt nuclear plant on the Danube, in the north of the country.

The scandal erupted on Tuesday last week after the head of the national utility company NEK Krasimir Parvanov signed an agreement with Rosatom's subsidiary Atomstroyexport that potentially threatens Bulgaria's national interests by obliging the Bulgarian government to reach a final agreement with the Russians on Belene by June 1, 2001.

The sneaky move was slammed by the Economy and Energy Minister Traicho Traikov and led to Parvanov's dismissal, which was eventually overturned by Prime Minister Boyko Borisov.

Borisov harshly criticized the minister's hasty and emotional reaction and threatened him with being kicked out of office.

It turned out that Parvanov has coordinated his actions with Deputy Prime Minister Simeon Djankov, who oversees finance and economy.

It is still an open question whether the signed document is legally binding. The issue has stirred heated debates in Bulgaria as it comes before the two sides agree on the price of the project and conduct safety checks.

The prime minister explained the fiasco with "miscommunication inside the government" and said he will ask Parvanov to submit his resignation even though he has "no guilt whatsoever."

NEK  CEO will be changed only because it has become clear that Parvanov can no longer have a productive work relationship with Traikov, the prime minister said.

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