What are the points of disagreement between the protesting energy workers and the government?

The main point on which the protesting miners and energy workers and the government cannot agree is the submission of the plans to the European Commission. According to the trade unions, the plans should be completely renegotiated, according to the state - this will lead to losses. The just transition plan provides for more than EUR 1.15 billion.

The European Commission confirmed today that it has received the Bulgarian plans for a just transition of the coal mining regions.

This morning the government published updated territorial just transition plans for the districts of Stara Zagora, Pernik and Kyustendil. These are also the regions that would be hardest hit by the shutdown of coal mining and its adjacent thermal power plants.

The total amount of the funds for the three regions is EUR 1.15 million, with most of the money going to Stara Zagora - EUR 936 million and the least to Pernik - EUR 92 million.

According to the updated plans, the dates for the closure of power plants are dropped, but the requirements for the closure of capacities remain, which in practice means the same. TPPs can operate for another 15 years. An additional ten years will be given for reclamation.

"We are not talking about any other date other than 2038. This is the year when electricity generation from coal-fired power plants will stop. There were demands from protesters to drop the 2026 date for TPP Bobov Dol - to have it removed," Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov said on 1 October 2023.

"They removed the date from the text, but the text itself remained, i.e. the closure of capacity in 2026 is there as text. The question is now about 4,500 installed capacities - 1,600 of which have to close in 2026 and which will they be," said Lyubomir Spasov, executive director of TPP "Bobov Dol".

"The plan says 'no capacity closures', but it also says that they will operate by 2030 at 1,500 megawatts, by 2035 at 1,000 megawatts. That's 3 million tonnes of coal, so half a mine will work from three," said Biser Binev, a trade unionist at Maritsa East Mines.

There are three main ways in which the government will distribute the money - to build sustainable capacities, including renewable energy, to provide social support and employment, and to create alternative industries where people can work.

For their part, however, the trade unions have other demands: that there be no interim years for shutting down capacity, but that this happen in full in 2038; that coal-fired electricity generation be maintained; that an energy strategy be written; and that the liberalisation of the domestic electricity market be delayed.

"Territorial plans do not close mines and thermal power plants, their goal is to attract 4 billion leva to coal regions through several different European programmes," said Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov on October 1 2023.

Government and unions also disagree on future social packages for those leaving the coal and energy sectors.

"The government will work together with the unions on a national programme for compensation packages," Prime Minister Denkov promised.

"We know one thing - there is no money for compensation and early retirement - this money will go for something else, it is not coming for us. On the one hand we are told you will work until 2038, on the other hand we are told 'come and get your severance pay'," said Vladimir Topalov, chairman of the miners' federation “Podkrepa”.

The proposal also faces criticism from economists.

"This is one of those grandiose promises that doesn't solve social problems, just throws out a solution that tries to put out the fire - what specifically needs to be done is to see which people should retire early, which people can be retrained or restructured in another enterprise," explained Constanţa Rangelova, Centre for the Study of Democracy.

The unions continue to insist that the plan be completely transformed. However, according to the government, there was a risk of losing funds if the plan was not submitted.

"This would have meant that we lose funds and from that point there would be nothing to talk about, the conversation becomes redundant," the prime minister said.

"The ball is in their court, we're reaching out too, we don't want anything much. We want them to come here, to us and meet," Biser Binev, a trade unionist at Maritsa East Mines said.

The submitted territorial plans are not final, but are yet to be renegotiated with the European Commission.

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