The Scotland-based Melrose Resources PLC oil and gas company announced they had found in Bulgaria, while prospecting in the region of Kavarna East along the northernmost Black Sea coast, a new natural gas depot of commercial significance, whose feasibility might exceed the initial estimates of the company’s experts. Melrose Resources has already discovered commercial value depots in another two sites located in Bulgaria, Kaliakra and Kavarna, lying within the same area of the Bulgarian shelf. The three depots have been estimated to contain nearly 3 billion cubic metres of natural gas. The company hopes to receive the required certificates and permits for gas drilling at short notice. The amount of gas in question could provide for 20% of Bulgaria’s demand in the coming 5-6 years. According to Economy, Energy and Tourism Minister Traycho Traykov, this will lead to a decrease in the price of gas for the end-consumer by 5% - 10%.
The Bulgarian Economy and Energy Minister pointed to the strategic importance of Melrose’s recently found gas depot. The strategy for the development of the Bulgarian energy sector that is currently under discussion places a great deal of attention on the utilization of local energy sources with the aim of reducing the country’s total dependence on the imports of energy sources from Russia, he added. At present Bulgaria imports nearly 75% of its primary energy sources (oil, gas, nuclear fuel, and coal).
“What is important for Bulgaria is that it has the gas depot, and that the price of that gas will be considerably lower than that of the gas imported from Russia. Very soon this gas will reach the Bulgarian consumers,” Economy and Energy Minister Traycho Traykov pointed out.
In his words the exploitation of the Bulgarian natural gas will decrease the price for the end-consumers by 5% to 10%. This discount should be added to the recently achieved agreement after heavy negotiations with the Russian side of a cut by nearly 7%. Because of the current Russian monopoly on supplies, Bulgaria receives gas at prices higher than the average for Russian gas for Europe. The end-consumers in Bulgaria certainly pay the highest prices of gas in Europe. This is very harmful to the competitiveness of the Bulgarian economy that uses natural gas in its operations.
The Scottish company is likely to be the largest UK investor in Bulgaria, according to His Excellency the Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Bulgaria, Steve Williams, who attended a news conference on the subject with Melrose CEO David Archer and the Bulgarian Economy, Energy and Tourism Minister Traycho Traykov in Sofia.
English version by Radostin Zhelev
