site.btaStara Zagora Municipal Council Adopts Declaration on Critical Financial Condition of TPP Maritsa East 2 EAD and Maritsa Mines East EAD

On Thursday, after almost 40 minutes of debates in the Municipal Council of Stara Zagora, with 46 votes in favour, one against and zero abstentions, a declaration on was adopted the critical financial condition of TPP Maritsa East 2 EAD and Maritsa Mines East EAD and the growing social tension in the region.

The coal-fired power plants from the Maritsa East complex and Bobov Dol produce more than 4% of the electricity in the country. At a cost of the produced energy of over BGN 300 per MWh (depending on the price of carbon emissions) Maritsa East 2 TPP EAD unable to compete on a market basis which portends production cuts and shutdowns leading to subsequent bankruptcy, coal production will also be reduced and nearly 12,500 people will be out of work.

The social effect would be catastrophic, because the reduction in production from Maritsa East Mines EAD would also reflect complex relationships with a network of counterparties, including suppliers of raw materials, construction and repair companies, suppliers of engineering services, and they will also cease activity. According to social surveys, these are another 37,000 jobs in the Stara Zagora region. In total, for the period from 2023 to 2038, the Stara Zagora region will lose more than 51,000 jobs, which is more than 53 of all jobs in the region, and the indirectly affected family members will be more than 146,000 people, which is more than 45% of the population in the Stara Zagora region, states the declaration submitted by municipal councilors Deyan Dyakov, Nasko Mitev and Borislav Yordanov. They argued that this will be a shock to the social security system, as well as a shock to the affected areas in general, as the progression will cause dozens of small businesses and services to close. The lack of opportunity for alternative employment will lead to migration, depopulation and increasing levels of domestic crime. In turn, this will lead to the closure of dozens more businesses, the document also noted.

In the declaration adopted on Thursday, the municipal councilors stated that "with the closure of the Maritsa East complex, the main engine of economic and social life in the municipality of Stara Zagora will be shut down.