With 105 votes “for”, 12 “against” and none abstained, the National Assembly voted for the financing of electric energy from the so-called “cold reserve” to be paid, when the need arises, only to the state-owned company Maritsa Iztok-2 thermal power plant.

The biggest sums for the cold reserve have so far been paid out to “Varna” thermal power plant, which is owned by the honourary chairman of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms, MRF, Ahmed Dogan, and to the thermal power stations Bobovdol and Maritsa-3.

In a strong response to the decision on behalf of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms, Ramadan Atalay, MRF MP stated that the next member of the cabinet to be dismissed will be Minister of Energy Temenuzhka Petkova. In the words of Ramadan Atalay the decision is in violation of the principle in power generation, set down in 20013, of determining who manages the cold reserve by tender. He added that the legislative changes are being made not on the basis of any rational principle, but on the basis of party hatred.

Valentin Nikolov from GERB party admitted that the decision was political.