Czech power distributor CEZ, the owner of Varna Heating Utility, said on September 17 that it would cut the power supply to Bobov Dol lignite coal mine as of September 24.

The reason is that Bobov Dol has overdue debts, which reached 6.3 million euro on September 14, including interest.

The mine claims that the cost of electricity transport should be deducted from its liabilities because the coal extractor owns the facilities. CEZ said that it was ready to negotiate the issue and said that this option had not been discussed yet.

Bobov Dol is Bulgaria’s largest underground mine. The state is the mine owner, while the coal extraction business was given on concession to the company Oranovo, controlled by local businessman Hristo Kovachki, IntelliNews agency reported on September 17.

The State Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (SEWRC) was also included in the dispute between CEZ and Oranovo at the request of the mine concessionaire.

For August alone, the amount due by Bobol Dol is 400 000 leva. In February this year, Oranovo requested electricity-measuring machines to be installed but so far they had not received them despite promises by CEZ, Bulgarian daily Dnevnik reported.

The mine is directly incorporated in the National Electricity Company but the contract for electricity sale is not completely legal because the common conditions for sale of CEZ have not been respected. Oranovo demanded the SEWRC position on this issue as well. It was also not clear what kind of fee CEZ should pay to Bobov Dol for using their electricity transportation system, the mine said in a media statement. Oranovo alleged that CEZ was misusing its monopoly position and said the new concessionaire had no involvement with the mine’s old debts. Oranovo said that it did not owe anything to CEZ and cutting its electricity could be interpreted as abuse of a monopoly position.

Bobov Dol energy chief Petur Petrov warned that a powercut could lead to a fire in the mine. He said the electricity was cut only during natural disasters. A powercut could put the lives of 900 people in danger. The Oranovo miners said they would strike if the power were cut.

The arguments between the two parties started in August when CEZ announced its intention to stop Bobov Dol’s power supply if Oranovo did not liquidate its debt up to September 24. Co-operation in the dispute was also requested from the Ministry of Economy and Energy, which a year ago named Oranovo as the Bobov Dol concessionaire.

It turned out that Oranovo could not stabilise the situation in the mine-extracting field and so far has operated at a loss. The ministry said that it was analysing the situation and it was possible that the contract with Oranovo could be cancelled.