An Act for Supplement to the Energy Act („ACEA“) was promulgated in issue 51 of the State Gazette of 27th June 2017, concerning preferential prices for high efficiency cogeneration energy producers using heat for green houses, i.e. producers of energy in a combined way using energy to produce agricultural products. 

The supplements concern Art. 30, para. 4 of the Energy Act („EA“) adding “no less than 100 percent of” after the word “uses”. The amendment provides for the Energy and Water Regulatory Commission („EWRC”) to set prices for small cogeneration producers if they use not less than 100% of the heat produced for plant production. Thus, the legislator aims to limit the abuse of preferential prices for cogeneration power plants and to back off the so called “loopholes” in the EA. So far, the EA has forbidden power plants with over BGN 5 million annual turnover and revenues from the sale of the so called high efficiency energy over 35% of the total revenues for the last three years to obtain preferential prices. However, there is an escape way for plants using combined heat for the production of plant production, i.e. greenhouses. The ACEA makes it possible to prevent an increase in the purchased quantities of electricity from cogenerations using thermal energy for agricultural production beyond the specified criteria and thus to limit the “draining” of tens of millions of levs from the National Electric Company (NEK EAD). All household and non-household consumers of electricity in Bulgaria shall be affected.

According to the Transitional Provision, the already started before the enactment of the ACEA procedures for regulation of prices for sale of heat energy and for the establishment of prices under Art. 33, para. 1 of the EA shall be terminated subject to the conditions under Art. 30, para. 4.

The amendment is not a prerequisite for the introduction of immediate or subsequent changes in other normative acts.