Parliament conclusively adopted amendments to the law paving the way for termination of Lukoil concession for Oil Port “Rosenets”

With 144 votes "for", 52 "against", the Parliament on July 21 conclusively adopted legislative amendments which will allow the State to terminate the concession of Lukoil Neftochim Burgas for Rosenets oil terminal. The MPs, on second reading, adopted changes to the Law on Control on the implementation of restrictive measures in view of Russia's actions destabilizing the situation in Ukraine.

After the vote on first reading with 134 MPs in favour of the texts, 45 against and 14 abstained, the Parliament decided to immediately start the discussion at second reading of the amendments to the Law on the control of the implementation of restrictive measures in view of the actions of Russia, destabilizing the situation in Ukraine. This happened after the chairperson of the sitting, Rositsa Kirova, refused to interpret a statement by Tsoncho Ganev from "Vazrazhdane" that their group will have proposals between the first and second readings and therefore they want a certain period between the two readings.

Hamid Hamid's attempt to start the report at the second reading was obstructed by "Vazrazhdane " MPs who surrounded the parliamentary rostrum in an attempt to stop the discussion of the bill. Shouting, personal attacks and insults once again blocked the work of the Parliament.

A reaction from "Vazrazhdane" followed the decision to consider the concession of the port of Rosenets at a second reading today.

Kostadin Kostadinov - Chairman of "Vazrazhdane": "We have witnessed another violation of the law. Even the right to vote is gone. The rules have been brutally raped, the ruling triple coalition reads the rules and laws like the devil reads the Bible. They decided they could look at two readings of the bill. We will refer to the Constitutional Court. The decision passes very quickly. We can't make suggestions on the text before it is passed on first reading. Here a covert coup d'état has been carried out by rejecting the referendum."

Lawsuits could be filed from Lukoil that the concession contract is being cancelled, for lost profits, to recover the improvements made to the Rosenets port. We will have to pay the costs, not Kiril Petkov and Mustafa Karadayi. This is an American order. This company is registered in Switzerland. "Lukoil can work without a problem in the Netherlands and Belgium, but it cannot work in Bulgaria. "Lukoil” will not lose. We will lose, Kostadinov added.

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Bulgaria signed a concession contract with Lukoil Neftohim Burgas in 2011. The concession is for a period of 35 years.

On July 19, three parties in Parliament, GERB-UDF, “We Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria” and the Movement for Rights and Freedoms, said they would propose termination of the concession of the Lukoil Neftochim Burgas refinery for the Rosenets oil terminal.

President Rumen Radev said that the idea was rushed and wrong.

Lukoil Neftochim Burgas said they would take the matter to court.