site.btaNational Electricity Company Reports LV 74 Mln Loss in First Half of 2018, Says Belene N-plant's Future Is Unclear

Sofia, August 2 (BTA) - The National Electricity Company (NEK) reported a net loss of 74 million leva in the first half of 2018, the Finance Ministry said Thursday. The outstanding loss from previous years amounted to 1,186,308,000 leva and the value of current liabilities exceeded the current assets by 674,674,000 leva.

The report says that during the review period the financial parameters of NEK did not comply with the requirements of the creditor banks which had provided long-term loans to the company. This creates an uncertainty which is likely to prompt doubts about the capacity of NEK to continue functioning without the support of its owner, the wholly state-owned Bulgarian Energy Holding (BEH), and other sources of financing.

The NEK management believes that with the financial support of BEH, NEK will be able to continue operating and repay its debts without having to dispose of assets and without making considerable changes in its operation, the report says.

Due to its worsened financial condition, NEK does not plan financing several investment projects, including the Upper Arda cascade, the Mesta cascade and several smaller projects, in the next five years.