Bulgaria utilities regulator raises heating prices, leaves electricity prices unchanged
Bulgaria’s Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC) ruled on October 1 to increase central heating prices by an average of 6.7 per cent for the last three months of 2018, but left electricity prices in the country unchanged.
The increase in heating prices was telegraphed last week, when the regulator decided to increase gas prices by 13.9 per cent.
“Based on that decision, today EWRC made the decision to increase the central heating prices, which will rise by between 2.3 per cent and 8.6 per cent,” EWRC chairperson Ivan Ivanov said, as quoted by Focus news agency.
The lowest increase of 2.3 per cent applied to customers of the Varna heating utility, while residents of Bulgaria’s other major Black Sea city, Bourgas, would pay 4.9 per cent more.
Capital Sofia and Bulgaria’s second-largest city of Plovdiv will both see hikes above the country average – eight per cent and 8.6 per cent, respectively.
Four heating utilities that use coal instead of natural gas would see no change in their prices, Ivanov said.
(Photo: jaime06492/sxc.hu)
