Bulgaria’s Energy Minister Traicho Traikov, accompanied by his deputy Maya Hristova and Bulgarian Energy Holding boss Galina Tosheva were in Moscow on December 24 2009 to meet Russian energy minister Sergey Shmatko.
 
Trakov’s ministry said that the meeting was being held to discuss "energy issues of mutual interest to the two countries".
 
The Bulgarian Government that took office in July 2009 has been cool towards the major Russian-dominated energy projects to which the former Bulgarian Socialist Party-led government committed the country.
 
Prime Minister Boiko Borissov has kept Moscow waiting for clarity about whether Sofia will be prepared to go ahead with these projects, including the resumption of the Belene nuclear power station project about which the former government made a deal with Russian constructors, the South Stream gas pipeline and the Bourgas-Alexandroupolis pipeline project.
 
Traikov’s office said ahead of the meeting that the Bulgarian delegation was going to Moscow with no specific demands.
 
Shmatkov and Traikov met earlier in December in the framework of the intergovernmental commission on economic co-operation.
 
Through the Russian media, Moscow has sent several signals aimed at putting pressure on Bulgaria to clarify its stance. These signals have included scenarios in which South Stream would be re-routed to skirt Bulgaria.
 
On Belene, Russia reportedly has offered to finance the work of their companies on the nuke project.
 
Recent Russian media reports also have sought to portray current proposals for the Bourgas-Alexandroupolis pipeline as unlikely to pay off for the Russian companies involved.
 
According to Russian media reports after the meeting, Shmatko and Traikov agreed on the drafting of an action plan on the future of Belene. This should start in about two to three weeks, the reports said, quoting a statement by the energy ministry in Moscow.
Further, according to Russian news agency RIA Novosti, representatives of Russian gas giant Gazprom will hold talks with Bulgaria in January 2010 about project proposals and preparations for the South Stream project.
 
Russia’s energy ministry portrayed the development of co-operation with Bulgaria on South Stream as "very positive".
 
Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) said that negotiations on a new agreement on the delivery of natural gas from Russia would start in early 2010.
 
Talks on a new long-term agreement with Russia would begin by February at the latest.
 
Shmatko said that given that some of the contracts expired in 2010, Gazprom would make new proposals to Bulgaria that would include making the delivery process transparent.