Natural disasters seem to have a fatal crush on Bulgaria. In the wake of a series of heavy floods that left hundreds of families homeless, early March came with a veritable snow hell. In disbelief, Southern Bulgaria saw 2 meters in driven snow. Tourists were blocked in the Rhodope Mountains, roads were being cleared with military equipment and specialized vehicles were rescuing the sick. Hundreds of villages were left with no electricity supply for longer than a week resulting from broken power lines.

Now that the initial shock from this hell of snow in the Rhodopes is gone, a few important questions are raised. How come a European country claiming to develop modern technology has failed to deal with several days of heavy snowfalls? After all, the snow has swept a mountain region that should be well prepared for such weather conditions in the winter. How come a power company of the highest standards like the Austrian EVN has proved helpless in the face of wet snow that has broken down the power lines? How come in 21 c. electricity in Rhodope villages has been reaching consumers along wires attached to rotting wooden poles instead of running under the ground as present-day standards require? The reason is clear – the lack of any prevention, and part of prevention is the upgrading of a morally and physically obsolete electricity supply system.

More than 200 km of power lines are out of operation following the heavy snow. According to energy experts at least 40 million euro against assets at 1 billion should be invested by the European transmission system operator for the repair of power lines given that not even one euro has been planned to be invested in the renovation of the network.

In turn, the Chairperson of the energy watchdog Svetla Todorova told the Bulgarian National Radio that the private electricity distribution companies (EDCs) too should invest in the power network regardless of whether there were natural disasters or not. She did not rule out the possibility that EDCs could demand a new increase in power rates from July with precisely the same argument. But why now, and not earlier? Why has post-privatization control in the sector failed to work? Is it possible that so far EDCs have not analyzed the shape of power lines and have not considered their replacement or upgrading? And if so, why have controlling bodies failed to check and fine them?

Investments in the sector have been systematically slashed in the recent years with a single aim: to keep artificially low electricity rates in the poorest EU country where the energy market is still regulated despite the respective EU policies. As we found out last week, in the end this situation hurts average Bulgarians who have to pay for damage done by heavy snow by way of higher power rates.

English Daniela Konstantinova