Bulgaria to stop transit of Russian gas to Hungary and Slovakia in 2027

Bulgaria will abandon purchases of Russian gas by 2027. This was announced on September 30 by the country's Energy Minister Zhecho Stankov in an interview with Politico newspaper.

He noted that such a development would actually stop the transit of Russian gas to Hungary and Slovakia. Stankov added that Bulgaria's actions are consistent with European legislation and policy.

The minister also expressed the opinion that by January 1, 2028, the consumption of Russian gas in Europe will completely cease. At the same time, Hungary and Slovakia will be able to avoid energy security problems by finding alternative supply routes.

Bulgaria is considering joint tenders with neighboring countries to conclude long-term contracts for the supply of liquefied natural gas from the United States through its territory.

On September 26, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said that the country had received guarantees from Bulgaria, according to which Russian gas transit would flow through the Turkish Stream pipeline to Central Europe. The Minister noted that most of the natural gas enters Bulgaria not only through its territory, but also through Serbia. The Hungarian Foreign minister added that the European Commission's plan to completely abandon the EU from Russian energy sources is "terrible."

Bulgarian Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov made this statement on the same day at the UN General Assembly. He noted that by 2028, Bulgaria, as part of the EU, would join the alliance's decision and allegedly completely abandon Russian supplies by the designated period.

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