Bajatovic: Bulgarian Taxes on Transit of Russian Gas to Influence Its Price in Serbia

The decision of Bulgaria to increase the taxes for the transit of gas by the Balkan Stream gas pipeline through that country will influence its price, stated the director of the PE Srbijagas, Dusan Bajatovic, as reported by the Beta news agency.

– Whether (the tax payment) reflects on the consumers in Serbia depends on what the Government of Serbia estimates. We will not just observe the price of gas, but also the economic growth, jobs, whether the populace can pay it – Bajatovic said.

At the end of last week, Bulgaria imposed additional taxes on the import and transport of Russian gas in the amount of 20 levs (around EUR 10) per megawatt-hour.

They came into effect on October 13.

The estimates are that Bulgaria might earn EUR 1 billion a year from these taxes.

Bajatovic believes that the increase of the transit tax is “a terrible situation for the entire Southeast Europe.”

– This violates all market rules and implements a discriminatory measure. It turns out that the consumers in Serbia and Hungary now have to fill out the Bulgarian budget – said the director of Srbijagas.

JP Srbijagas Novi Sad

Srbijagas

Dušan Bajatović

Russian gas

increase of Bulgarian transit tax

gas price increase