site.btaBulgaria, Russia to Review Joint Energy Projects

Bulgaria, Russia to Review Joint Energy Projects

Sofia, August 5 (BTA) - In a phone conversation on Friday, Prime Minister Boyko Borissov and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the establishment of working groups which will review joint energy projects, the government information service said. The experts will discuss issues and possible ways to resolve them in line EU regulations.

The conversation took place on Borissov's initiative a day after European Commission President Jean Claude Juncker replied to questions raised by the Bulgarian government in connection with the implementation of a number or energy projects such as the Balkan gas hub, the South Stream gas pipeline, the Burgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline and nuclear energy. Borissov underscored that pipes for the construction of the South Stream pipeline are still stored at the ports in Burgas and Varna.

Borissov and Putin hailed the work and the results of the session of the Bulgarian-Russian intergovernmental commission for economic and scientific and technical cooperation held in January in Sofia. The two leaders highlighted a need for stepping up its activities which would restore two-way trade to its full potential.

Prime Minister Borissov and Russian President Putin discussed possibilities to increase the number of tourists, noting that tourism will continue to play an important role in Bulgarian-Russian relations. In 2015 Bulgaria was visited by nearly 500,000 Russian tourists. President Putin voiced expectation that their number will increase significantly in 2016.