The National Energy Chamber expresses serious concern over the apparent lack of timely action to ensure the continued energy security of the country and the stability of the electricity system following the expiration of the long-term agreement between the National Electricity Company (NEK) and TPP AES Galabovo. We are concerned that the imminent shutdown of the power plant exposes the country to a number of risks that are either being underestimated by the responsible institutions or not fully understood.
First and foremost, this is a risk to the country’s energy independence, as the plant, with a net capacity of 600 MW, relies entirely on domestic resources to provide baseload and dispatchable capacity with a high level of flexibility that is relatively unaffected by the volatility of global energy markets or by external political and security risks. These risks are particularly tangible during periods of peak consumption and in the winter season and have a direct impact on the country’s competitiveness. Moreover, in a world where energy resources and infrastructure are increasingly being used as instruments of geopolitical and military pressure, this risk should not be overlooked.
Secondly, but no less importantly, there is a risk to the stability of the electricity system. As is well known, including from publicly available documents of the system operator ESO EAD, the retirement of the plant deprives the system of a reliable domestic provider of critical ancillary services — frequency control and operational flexibility. In addition to frequency-related services, ESO’s ten-year network development plan recognizes the important role of the plant for providing system inertia and black-start capability following potential system disturbances.
In the current highly dynamic market environment, the system is losing a valuable dispatchable generation capacity that has no equivalent on the Bulgarian market. At present, no comparable source of generation and ancillary services has been secured that could adequately replace the retired power plant. This creates risks both for increasing energy prices and for the stability of the power system itself, together with all resulting losses under a potential adverse scenario.
As a responsible participant in the electricity market, the National Energy Chamber calls on the decision-makers not to underestimate these risks, but instead to seek an adequate solution on the basis of a new market mechanism within the European and Bulgarian legal framework in the best interest of Bulgaria’s strategic security and the stability and reliability of the energy sector.
