A ban on the import of oil from Russia comes into force in Bulgaria

The draft law adopted by the country’s parliament entered into force.

From Friday, March 1, the largest oil refinery in Bulgaria – controlled by Russia “Lukoil Neftokhim Burgas” – will stop processing Russian oil . This norm is contained in the law passed by the country’s parliament, BTA writes .

The specified document also prohibits the export of fuel produced from Russian oil from January 1, 2024.

“Thus, Bulgaria terminated the exemption to the EU embargo on oil imports from Russia, which the European Commission granted to Bulgaria in 2022 due to the specific geographical location of the country. According to the current legislation, the exemption was supposed to be canceled on October 1, 2024,” the statement said.

By December 31, 2023, the National Customs Agency must conduct an inventory of warehouses and compile an inventory of fuel and crude oil stocks. Fuel that cannot be sold on the Bulgarian market for environmental reasons can be exported according to the procedure established by the EU regulation.

As reported by the Bulgarian news publication “BGNES”, this means that a complete ban on the import of Russian oil into the country comes into force from today.

Energy resources of the Russian Federation

Earlier, UNIAN wrote that Bulgaria will become the main route for the import of Russian gas to the European Union in 2025. In connection with the expected termination of Russian gas transit through Ukraine at the end of this year, the Balkan Stream gas pipeline through Bulgaria will become the main supply route for the EU.

At the same time , increased US sanctions are hurting India’s oil trade with Russia, forcing refiners to consider other suppliers. Russia is still the dominant supplier to India, but there are signs that refiners are buying more from other countries.

(C)UNIAN 2024