65M EURO FOR EXPANSION
A Dutch-registered unit of Bulgarian business conglomerate Chimimport placed a 65 million euro corporate bond with the option to increase the size by up to 15 million euro. The proceeds will be invested in the company’s expansion through strategic acquisitions and for general business purposes.

BTC RESPOND
On August 18 the Bulgarian Telecommunications Company (BTC) responded to the complaint filed by the biggest local mobile operator MobilTel, which claimed that by bundling the internet service ADSL with its mobile services, BTC was making ADSL clients change their mobile provider choosing BTC Mobile (Vivatel). BTC said that the competition among the telecom operators was healthy, all its promotions corresponded to the state telecom regulators’ requirements and all its services were also offered individually so there was no exploitation of prices.

FACING SHUTDOWN
Some of Bulgaria’s zinc and lead mines may have to be shut down temporarily if the price of metals on global markets continue to fall, the executive secretary of the Bulgarian mining and geology chamber Petar Petrov said. In the case that lead dips below $1300 and zinc falls below $1500 per ton, with no immediate price recovery, all Gorubso mines will certainly close down.

FACING PENALTY
An operation group set up by the Bulgarian Economy Ministry to investigate the handling of gas transit fees by Bulgargaz and Bulgartransgaz has recommended a regulatory penalty for breaches of their respective licences, Dnevnik reported on August 18. Economy Minister Petar Dimitrov ordered the enquiry after Bulgartransgaz executive director Angel Semerdjiev asked the prosecution authorities to investigate if the agreement between trader company Bulgargaz and the transmission company, on the collection and distribution of fees paid by Russia’s Gazprom for transporting its gas via Bulgarian territory, violated the energy law.

DIRECT PETROLEUM
Direct Petroleum Exploration Inc (DPE), a Denver-based exploration firm, has finished the initial stage of a gas well in northern Bulgaria. Limited flow testing was undertaken on the high pressure Lower Jurassic Ozirovo zone on August 17 at the site of the Deventci-R1 well some 150km north-east of the capital Sofia, the company said. Well backflow was suspended until high-pressure testing and production equipment was received from the US in September.