The European Union did not require from Bulgaria to set a certain deadline to close its coal-fired power plants, this country’s Minister of Energy Temenuzhka Petkova said at a forum for social dialogue in the energy sector organized by the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria.

According to the EU requirement, we should reduce production of electricity that generates CO2 emissions. However, no one said that these power plants must close. The European Commission clearly stated that these facilities are able to receive state aid until 2025. After this date these power plants can function on a commercial basis and sell their energy, but no one said that they must stop functioning, Minister Petkova said, quoted by reporters of BNR.