Radev Finishes Consultations
Consultations with the various factions are now over and President Rumen Radev is due to hand over the first mandate to form a government. Since the Constitution does not explicitly state a deadline for this, the decision rests with Radev himself. In his talks with the various political parties, however, Radev did not indicate how he intends to proceed.
On the first day of the meetings, GERB asked the president for more time for negotiations. Once the mandate is handed over, Prime Minister-designate Mariya Gabriel has seven days to either return it empty or devise a proposal for the structure and composition of the Council of Ministers.
BSP has already announced that it will not participate in forming a government.
Chaira's Repair Tender underway
A little more than 53.5 million levs is the estimated price for the repair of one of the elements of the damaged Chaira pumped storage hydro power plant in the Rila mountains. On March 7, the National Electric Company (NEK) announced a public order for the replacement of the turbine of hydro unit 4. The company that will be selected will be in charge of the design, manufacture, and delivery of the facilities, as well as the dismantling of the existing structure and installation of the delivered new equipment.
The "repair" of this hydro unit is only one of the activities that are yet to be carried out, so that the Chaira, which was damaged two years ago, can work again. Bulgaria's largest energy battery is in the stage of reconstruction, related to the restoration of hydro unit 2, which according to the plan should happen by the end of 2024. The third unit is also up for repair. For hydro unit 1, where no rehabilitation activities have been carried out, discussions continue with the original manufacturer of the equipment - Toshiba, and the repair deadline has not yet been specified.
More Refugees Are Returned To Bulgaria
In 2023, 590 refugees were returned to Bulgaria. So far in 2024, 192 have been returned, with 77 of them from Austria. These are refugees whose first country of "sanctuary" was Bulgaria but then moved on to other states.
Experts claim that if the pace of refugee returns remains like this until the end of the year, then the overall rate for 2024 could be double that of 2023. They also specified that the number of requested transfers is significantly higher, but many of them are not carried out.
According to estimates, the refugee centers in Bulgaria are currently 43% full (housing about 1,600 people). It was added that Bulgaria can provide annual protection to 30,000 people.
