State-owned operator Bulgarian State Railways (BDZR) will halt hauling raw materials and production to and from the Kremikovtzi steel mill if it does not pay all debts by February 25, Bulgarian Deputy Transport Minister Georgi Petarneichev said, as quoted by zagrada.bg.

BDZ halted cargo haulage two weeks earlier for the same reasons. Then Kremikovtzi covered 60 per cent of its liabilities toward the railway operator. Now BDZ demands the payout of the remaining 40 per cent.

Kremikovtzi acknowledged it owed BDZ 17 million leva, but is disputing another seven million leva. On February 20, Bulgarian Economy and Energy Ministry refused to give Kremikovtzi a three-month grace period on overdue payments.

On the same day, the majority shareholder of Kremikovtzi was imposed a 239.2 million leva fine for failing to meet its investment guarantees.

Sofia City Court ruled in favour of the Agency for Post-Privatisation Control (APPC) in a case that dragged on for four years, whose start saw Kremikovtzi change ownership. In 2003, despite Kremikovtzi assets being impounded, which did not stop erstwhile owner Valentin Zahariev from selling Finmetals to Indian industrialist Pramod Mittal.

The sum is the leva equivalent of 180 million US dollars that the majority owner of the mill had to pay to APPC to ensure implementation of its five-year investment programme. Roussi Statkov, member of the APPC supervisory council told Dnevnik daily that Mittal had to provide $30 million in bank guarantees and $5 million as promissory note.