site.btaBulgarian President, Greek PM Open Energy Forum at Bulgarian COP 29 Pavilion in Baku

Bulgarian President Rumen Radev and Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis opened an energy forum at the Bulgarian pavilion on the sidelines of COP29 in Baku on Wednesday. The event is organized by the Presidential Administration and the Energy Ministry. The forum was hosted by Bulgarian Energy Minister Vladimir Malinov. The forum at the Bulgarian pavilion followed an event at COP29's Greek pavilion with the participation of President Radev and Prime Minister Mitsotakis on the development of the Vertical Gas Corridor initiative, which aims to increase the transmission of natural gas to the European market, from Greece to Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, Moldova and Ukraine, as well as in the opposite direction. The project and its importance for Europe's energy connectivity and diversification was presented at the Greek Pavilion at COP29 in an event attended by the Bulgarian head of State.

The event at the Bulgarian pavilion discussed energy connectivity between European countries and the promotion of renewable energy production and storage.

On Bulgaria’s initiative, a joint intention to accelerate cooperation in this field was declared. A non-binding policy document was also signed to promote regional partnerships and initiatives in the field of renewable energy and new energy technologies. The document is supported by Bulgaria, Greece, Romania, Moldova, Hungary, Belgium, UK. A Memorandum of Understanding was also signed between the Energy Ministries of Bulgaria and Moldova.

“Today we are talking about a declaration of intent on electricity, connectivity and transmission and in order to understand the importance of this project, we need to put it in a broader European context,” President Rumen Radev said at the opening of the forum.

"It is crucial to analyze the significance of this project against the background of what is happening in Europe at the moment. A few years ago, the EU adopted the most ambitious project for transition to a low-carbon economy and decarbonization. In the meantime, Europe has been shaken by many crises - COVID-19, the war in Ukraine, which disrupted supply chains and led to extremely high prices. The result is clear, and it was pointed out in Mario Draghi's report - Europe is losing its competitiveness in relation to other strategic players. This is mainly due to high energy prices. So the question is what to do," the Bulgarian head of State said.

He recalled how countries reacted in the beginning of the crisis. "We mobilized all resources at that time. I remember when we were fighting for every opportunity and how every day I was calling the Prime Minister of Greece on the phone and asking him to provide us with a slot for liquefied gas. Later, we realized that we could be much more successful if we worked bilaterally and and we started accelerating the connectivity of our networks," the President said. He stressed that the document on electricity grid interconnection, which was signed today in Baku, leads to a much more mature stage - regional cooperation and coordination. "This is the key to success. The concept of this new approach gives more opportunities and freedom of action for us and our partners. This is why electricity transmission corridors are becoming vital. Together with wind, solar and hydrogen sources, they will be a pillar of the green transition," Radev stressed.

At the opening of the forum, Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis underlined the need for even stronger cooperation to overcome regional and European challenges. He stressed that the biggest challenge for both the countries of the region and the EU is to promote competitiveness while increasing green technologies. “We have shown that our countries can work productively for our peoples,” the Greek Prime Minister said. He recalled that Greece stood by Bulgaria "in a difficult moment when Russia stopped gas supplies, then we helped Bulgaria".

Energy Minister Malinov noted that the Bulgarian initiative to promote regional partnerships and initiatives in the field of renewable energy and new energy technologies has been supported by the Czech Republic, Greece, Italy, Belgium, Moldova, Romania, the UK, Hungary and is expected to expand the partnership network.

Theodoros Skylakakis, Greece's Minister of Environment and Energy, stressed that unless good connectivity of energy systems is established, major efforts to transmit at lower prices will face serious problems.

Romanian Energy Minister Sebastian Ioan Burduja also noted the importance of connectivity and regional initiatives.

Hungary's State Secretary for Energy Supply, Peter Staraj, underlined that the Bulgarian initiative is significant for his country and stressed that it is a symbol of cooperation in the green transition. “If we are not better connected, we will not survive,” he said and reminded that the problems with energy infrastructure in Central and Eastern Europe go back several decades.

Moldovan Energy Minister Victor Parlicov stressed that his country's goal is to become part of the European energy market before it joins the EU. He recalled the energy supply problems caused by the war in Ukraine. The country today needs to import electricity in the volume it exported before the war, he said.

The importance of infrastructure to security should not be underestimated, Belgian Energy Minister Tinne Van der Straeten said. She welcomed the Bulgarian initiative and the countries that supported it and stressed that it was important because it would lower prices. We cannot produce the electricity we need and we rely on our neighbouring countries, she stressed.

The future of energy security is the reliability of interconnectors, said Azerbaijani Deputy Energy Minister Orkhan Zeynalov, who also participated in the forum at the Bulgarian pavilion.