Socialist councilors in Bourgas, Bulgaria's second-largest city on the Black Sea coast, have come out to defend again the Bourgas-Alexandroupolis pipeline, the joint project with Greece and Russia, saying that it was vital for the Bulgarian economy and one of the very few positive and constructive initiatives in which Bulgaria participates.

The declaration was in regard to the failed presentation on November 12 by the Trans Balkan Pipeline project company, which has been tasked with the construction of the pipeline from the seaside town of Bourgas to its Greek counterpart, Alexandropoulis.

Approximately an hour before the presentation was scheduled to start, a protest organised by environmental activists from 15 non-governmental organisations, as well as political parties such as the Union of Democratic Forces (UDF) and ultra-right nationalist Ataka party began protesting and booed the participants of the presentation and Deputy Minister for Regional Development, Kalin Rogachev.

The Greek and Russian guests at the presentation were not spared verbal abuse either and once they entered the hall, the Bulgarian green activists prevented the foreigners from speaking.

"We dont want a dialogue", "We dont want you here", "Out of Bourgas", "You are mafia, no one invited you here", were just some of the constant chants aimed at the participants of the event,

On the same occasion, Socialist councillors in Bourgas said that the project would facilitate significant benefits for Bourgas, the entire sorrounding region and its citizens and that a vast array of positive outcomes will be extracted from the revenue and the new energy infrastructure. However, no one around them was keen on listening as the protests only deteriorated.

Bulgarian Socialists, the senior partner in the three-way ruling coalition, believe that in the current climate of economic stagnation and the credit crunch, shrinking of production capability and capacity and the shrinking of the global markets which already affect Bulgaria seriously, the Bourgas-Alexandropoulis pipeline is one of the very few positive and constructive initiatives in which the country currently participates.

Environmentalists, however, argue that the technology considered for the project was not safe and could lead to a massive oil spill if something goes wrong. Political parties also argue that the financial benefits of the project are too vague to justify the costs of the undertaking, which would also increase Bulgaria's dependance on Russian energy supplies at a time when the rest of the European Union is seeking ways of decreasing it.

Bulgaria and Greece hold 24.5 per cent each in the pipeline, with the remainder belonging to Russia.

Talks on the Bourgas-Alexandroupolis oil project, meant to bypass the congested Bosphorus, dragged for 14 years and it was only in 2007 that the three countries shook hands. The pipeline will carry 700 000 barrels a day when fully operational. It would cost about 1.5-1.55 billion euro to build, the project operator said in June, an increase of 50 per cent over estimates from 2007.