Deputy economy minister Maya Hristova stated that the public offering of the state-controlled Bulgarian Energy Holding (BEH) or its subsidiaries may take place at the end of next year at earliest thus rejecting earlier information that the IPO may be in Q2. The selection of a consultant and the technical procedure proposal will take several months, which will allow restructuring of the holding, and improving the financials of the coalmine Maritsa East and the power system operator NEC. In line with EU regulations the cabinet will take out of the structure of the holding the assets of the two system operators – the Electricity System Operator and Bulgartransgaz, and will restructure also NEC, which comprises both electricity production and trading. The cabinet will offer 10 to 15% of the state energy companies but it remains to be decided whether it will offer stakes in BEH as a whole or in its individual subsidiaries. It is not clear either if the IPO will take place on the local stock exchange or abroad. BEH was set up in September last year and comprises the natural gas supplier Bulgargaz, natural gas transmission utility Bulgartransgaz, the telecom arm Bulgartel, NEC, the nuclear power plant in Kozloduy, thermo-power plant Maritsa East II, and coalmine Maritsa East. The government is also considering selling through the stock exchange its 33% stake in each of the three electricity distributing companies in the country controlled by the local subsidiaries of CEZ, EVN and E.ON as the ban in the privatisation contract for selling the residual stakes expires at the end of this year