site.btaOil Traders Accuse Vesselin Mareshki of Dumping, He Blames Them for Cartel Arrangement

Sofia, November 21 (BTA) - An oil trader on Tuesday accused National Assembly Deputy Chairman Vesselin Mareshki of unlawfully undercutting business competitors through his two fuel companies. Mareshki struck back by saying that he has alerted visiting European Parliament leaders about a fuel cartel in Bulgaria.

Tuesday's war of words began when Lukoil Bulgaria Director General Valentin Zlatev announced that member companies of the Bulgarian Petroleum and Gas Association (BPGA) will petition the Commission for Protection of Competition on Wednesday against what they see as a textbook example of dumping by Mareshki's two fuel companies.

Zlatev spoke to journalists after being questioned by the anti-corruption unit at the Sofia City Prosecution Office earlier in the day in connection with his statement that Mareshki is protected by a political umbrella.

Zlatev told the media that Mareshki's two fuel companies are operating at a loss. One of them has incurred a loss of 13.3 million leva, and the other one, 1.8 million leva. "This is a classical, textbook example of dumping," he said. "Some day someone may put a 0.10 leva price tag on bread before bidding for the Presidency." He called for a tax probe on Mareshki.

Mareshki is known for his chain of filling stations which sell cheap fuel. He also owns pharmacies. His low-price strategy obviously won him many of the votes which put him in fourth place in the November 2016 presidential elections and brought his Volya party into Parliament in March 2017.

Zlatev repeated his earlier statement that Mareshki is protected by a political umbrella. Asked who has put up that umbrella, Zlatev said: "Strangely, Vesselin Mareshki's star began to rise between 2011 and 2012, when Simeon Djankov was finance minister. I am not suggesting anything. I am just saying that not a single financial audit or tax or customs probe on Mareshki has been completed since then."

The Volya party said later in the day that Mareshki has alerted the European Parliament leadership to the existence of a fuel cartel in Bulgaria. He told them about it during Tuesday's Sofia meeting between the presiding bodies of the European Parliament and the Bulgarian National Assembly.

Mareshki was quoted in the press release as saying that the Bulgarian people are robbed of over 1 billion euro every year as they are forced to pay exorbitant prices for fuel, a fact which has been reported by various sources, including the powerholders.

Mareshki said he has filed a claim with the prosecution service against Zlatev's allegations.