“We will not give up the initiative to achieve better prices for consumers.” This was stated by the Minister of Economy Bogdan Bogdanov in the program “Hello, Bulgaria” to NOVA.
“With Affordable for You, we aim to achieve permanently low prices on 50 essential products. The campaign itself is voluntary. It does not oblige one chain or another to respect certain price ceilings. We have created a basis for competition between the various participants in the initiative and for these 50 products of basic necessity,” said Bogdanov.
The Minister of Economy said that in the opinion of the CPC, in which a negative attitude towards the initiative is expressed, there are no legal arguments, but economic reasoning.
“We don’t set prices. We tell them they are competing for these 50 products,” Bogdanov said.
The Ministry of Economy prepared yesterday an additional statement to the CPC. “I will initiate a conversation,” the minister added.
“We do not want the participants in the initiative to be compromised. Nor do we want consumers to be in the situation, as the antitrust authority says, of being offered just one hot lunch. Today we will send a letter to the Commission requesting a meeting to discuss the points of concern,” Bogdanov said.
Regarding the money that Lukoil has to pay into the Energy Security Fund, he pointed out that the reason for this is a law that was adopted at the beginning of this year but has not entered into force. The reason – there are unnecessary final provisions for notification to the European Commission. “There are two stages of notification. The first was completed in March, but the second was not even started by the then ruling caretaker cabinet. This is the reason Lukoil has not paid so far,” the minister said
“Currently the law has not entered into force, the notification has not been completed. If the requirements for it are waived, it will come into force and then we expect Lukoil to fulfil its commitment,” he added.