site.btaOmbudsman Requests Extraordinary Probe into Sofia Heating Utility over Unusually High Bills

National Ombudsman Diana Kovacheva has sent a recommendation to caretaker Energy Minister Rosen Hristov and the Chairman of the Energy and Water Regulatory Commission, Ivan Ivanov, in which she requested an extraordinary inspection of Sofia's Toplofikacia district heating utility, because of the unreasonably high heating bills received by residents of Sofia for estimated consumption in April, the Obmudsman's office reported here on Wednesday.  

Citizens are complaining that the invoiced amounts for this month are higher than for the typical winter months of December 2022 and January 2023 and demand more effective control by the competent state institutions in order to establish the reasons for the formation of unexpectedly high bills, and in case of errors or violations - to correct them.

"I take note of the duration of the provision of the heat supply service in the city of Sofia in April 2023, as well as the significantly higher heat prices for domestic customers in the capital compared to the same period in 2022. At the same time, I would like to draw attention to the fact that consumers do not have the opportunity to check for themselves whether the district heating company fulfils all its obligations in relation to the correct determination of the thermo-hydraulic modes for achieving minimum costs in the production and transmission of heat to the building installations, as well as regarding the temperature regimes, technical condition, setting and management of the subscriber stations that provide the central heat supply to the respective buildings - condominiums," wrote the Ombudsman. 

Kovacheva draws attention to the fact that Sofia heating utility published on its website on May 9 of this year data on the amount of heat produced and supplied for April, which show that the amount of heat produced for the month, amounting to 353,370 MWh, is the lowest since the beginning of the year. This compares to 551 838 MWh produced in January, 528 684 MWh in February and 440 128 MWh in March. The Ombudsman points out that it is quite understandable that all the household customers of the district heating company expect the estimated bills for April to be the lowest since the beginning of the year.