The Parliament of Bulgaria banned the export of fuel produced from Russian oil from January 1, 2024. In addition, since March 1, the Lukoil plant has been banned from processing Russian oil.
This was reported by BTA.
Thus, Bulgaria prematurely terminated the exemption from the EU ban on the import of Russian oil. This ban was imposed by the European Commission in 2022 due to Bulgariaʼs specific geographical location and was due to be lifted on October 1, 2024.
By the end of December, the countryʼs National Customs Agency will conduct an inventory of warehouses and check fuel and crude oil stocks. Fuel that cannot be sold on the Bulgarian market for environmental reasons can be exported in accordance with EU regulations.
At the same time, the Bulgarian deputies supported the abolition of the tax on the import and transit of Russian natural gas until the moment when the EU legislation does not establish provisions on the determination of the origin of natural gas.
- On November 9, Politico found a sanctions loophole in Bulgaria, thanks to which Russia earned a billion euros. Bulgaria allowed millions of barrels of Russian oil to enter the local Lukoil refinery, which then exported the fuel abroad, including to EU countries.