Bulgaria to receive first transfer under Recovery and Resilience Plan by end of the year

Bulgaria will receive the first transfer of funds under the Recovery and Resilience Plan in the amount of 1.35 billion euros by the end of the year. In an interview with Nova TV, Deputy Prime Minister for European Funds Atanas Pekanov specified that in order to receive the funds, this country fulfilled twenty-two conditions. The funds will finance projects that already started, including digitization and modernization of small and medium-sized enterprises. The Deputy Prime Minister added that the second payment under the Plan is tied to the biggest number of measures – 66, as 22 of them require legislative changes related to the rule of law. They were prepared by caretaker minister Krum Zarkov and are already in parliament for discussion.

Pekanov also pointed out that the Recovery Plan was completed by Kiril Petkov's regular cabinet and there was a condition that Bulgaria reduces harmful emissions from the energy sector by 40% by 2026. However, according to Atanas Pekanov, in the current situation of high electricity prices, it doesn't make financial sense for thermal power plants to close.

When it comes to Bulgaria’s future accession to the Eurozone, the date remains January 1, 2024. According to Pekanov, this is a political decision that did not depend on the official cabinet. /BGNES