site.btaRevisions to Energy Act Related to Power Outages Passed on First Reading


With 158 votes in favour and 17 abstentions, the National Assembly Wednesday adopted on first reading amendments to the Energy Act related to the power outages in December 2024. The draft revisions are sponsored by MPs Pavela Mitova of There Is Such a People and Delyan Dobrev of GERB-UDF.
Mitova, who co-authored the amendments and chairs the parliamentary Energy Committee, noted that implementing the bill does not require cost money from the state budget, because the energy distribution companies finance the programmes with their own resources. She recalled that in the period from December 21 to 31, 2024, there were power outages in the country that necessitated intervention by the Ministry of Energy. According to her, the penalties for legal entities for violations are disproportionate to the damage caused and should thus be updated.
The proposed amendments are aimed at increasing the security of electricity supply to the distribution networks by introducing provisions obliging the electricity distribution companies to make investments, where necessary, for the maintenance and modernisation of the distribution networks, thereby ensuring the security and quality of electricity supply.
It is proposed to introduce specific provisions related to the powers of the Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC), namely that the energy regulator should have the right to approve and control the implementation of the investment programmes of electricity distribution network operators. The EWRC will be able to require from the operator of the relevant electricity distribution network to include in its investment programme investment activities for the maintenance or modernisation of certain facilities and sites.
Another proposal suggests that the EWRC should approve a minimum amount of investment and repair costs planned by electricity distribution network operators for each regulatory period related to the reconstruction and modernisation of existing electricity facilities.
The amount of existing penalties for breach of mandatory provisions of the Energy Act for legal entities, in relation to the damage caused, is low and the administrative and penal provisions in the Energy Act should be updated, reads the reasoning of the bill.
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