“Bulgargaz is negotiating with Gazprom Export. There is a very strong political nuance on the part of Russia,” Bulgarian Energy Minister Rosen Hristov said on Tuesday, according to Mediapool, quoted by Rador.

His statement came after Bulgargaz CEO Denita Zlateva said last week that the Bulgarian company was not participating in negotiations with Gazprom. And a day ago, interim Minister of Economy Nikola Stoyanov said that negotiations are definitely underway, but he does not know who is conducting them.

Now, according to the words of the Minister of Energy of Bulgaria, it became known that the Russian company does not say what the prices will be and whether supplies will resume. “We did not receive answers to various questions from them – prices, delivery terms, protection by points. At this time, we do not believe that directly involving the government in negotiations with the Russian government will lead to a more positive outcome. Ministers do not communicate with Russians. At the moment, we believe that this is the most correct decision,” he added.

• Read also: Bulgaria, deprived of Russian gas, wants to review negotiations with Gazprom.

Hristov also announced that the interconnector with Greece will be put into operation from October 1. Through it, the agreed amount will come from Azerbaijan, and Bulgaria will start negotiations on additional volumes of Azerbaijani gas, pending an offer on the amount and price.

“I think we are not expecting a cold winter. We strive to optimize the price,” the minister emphasized. According to him, the temporary Cabinet of Ministers is also working on other options for the supply of liquefied and pipeline gas from Turkey.

Regarding the government’s rejection of 6 out of 7 LPG tankers, Hristov explained that there are no free stations in Greece to unload tankers, as everything is reserved. The minister added that if Bulgaria had agreed with mediators on offloading, the price would have been high.

In mid-October, Greece will announce an auction for next year’s charging stations. Only after that, an auction for liquefied gas tankers will be announced, Hristov emphasized.

The interim government of Bulgaria has agreed to a station in Turkey where a tanker with liquefied gas will be unloaded. “We intend to discuss the long-term use of these unloading stations with the Turkish side,” he added.