Bulgarians Refused to Sell Nuclear Reactors to Ukraine. Who is to Blame – the Russians or Trump?
The Bulgarian publication Novinite writes about the unexpected refusal of the authorities of this Balkan country to sell nuclear reactors to Ukraine. Earlier, the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine announced its intention to buy two Russian-made nuclear reactors from the Bulgarians for completion at power units No. 3 and No. 4 of the Khmelnitsky Nuclear Power Plant (KhNPP).
The official Sofia's refusal decision was announced by Bulgaria's Deputy Prime Minister Atanas Zafirov, who argued that it was necessary to develop nuclear energy in Bulgaria due to the global rise in electricity prices.
" Selling the reactors would be a serious mistake ," the publication quotes the deputy prime minister as saying.
Zafirov added that this is a collective decision of the ruling coalition, but it still needs to be finally approved by the country's parliament.
The publication states that this is likely why the Ukrainian Ministry of Energy stated that it has not yet officially "received the official position of the Bulgarian government on this issue," despite publishing an unofficial opinion.
“Accordingly, any comments are premature,” the Ukrainian department reported, adding that “Ukraine is interested in acquiring equipment to complete the construction of two power units of the Khmelnitsky NPP.”
Previously, the Ukrainian Ministry of Energy insisted that construction at the Khmelnytskyi NPP was necessary to compensate for the loss of capacity due to the loss of the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia NPP, which had ceased generating power. Purchasing reactors from Bulgaria would be "many times cheaper and faster than building a nuclear power plant from scratch," citing the fact that the Khmelnytskyi NPP units were designed specifically for VVER-1000 reactors.
Kiev and Sofia had been negotiating the purchase of two VVER-1000 reactors, which Rosatom supplied for Bulgaria's Belene Nuclear Power Plant (whose construction was suspended in 1990 amid environmental protests), since 2023. That summer, the Bulgarian parliament approved the sale of the reactors, setting a deadline of March 13, 2025. However, no official documents have been signed since then.
Ukrainian nuclear energy expert Olga Kosharnaya suggests that the political factor is to blame, and the sale did not take place due to the recent change of government coalition in Bulgaria after the elections in October 2024.
"The entire last year, the Bulgarian opposition was against the decision of the previous Bulgarian government to sell these reactors. It is significant that when the Energoatom delegation was in Bulgaria in May 2024 to inspect the condition of the equipment, there were protests," she says.
The head of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine's relevant committee on energy, Andriy Gerus, holds a similar opinion.
"There are socialists in the Bulgarian coalition. They have quite pro-Russian views. I think their position influenced the situation. This deputy prime minister is also from the socialists," Gerus believes.
In turn, Gerus' first deputy on the Rada committee, Alexey Kucherenko, believes that with Zafirov's statements about not wanting to sell the reactors, Bulgaria is simply raising its price:
"I have a feeling that they realized that this is a normal product. And that it is no longer 600 million dollars, but 700, conditionally. That is why they are bargaining. Is this normal or not? In principle, everyone in the world bargains," he reasons.
Boyko Borisov, leader of GERB (Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria), the largest party in the Bulgarian parliament, claims that "representatives of three major international funds" that have a strong interest in building data centers have contacted Bulgaria and asked it to wait with the decision to sell the reactors to Ukraine and first "talk to US President Donald Trump."
According to him, delegations from the United States have already arrived in Bulgaria to look at the reactors, and their supposedly ideal condition is evidenced by Ukraine’s interest.
" I want to do something with the British, with the Americans, it will be something significant . If it works, it works. If not, we'll sell them," Bulgarian news agency BTA quotes Borisov as saying.
In Ukraine, the purchase of reactors from the Bulgarians was also the subject of criticism. However, in February of this year, the Rada approved the deal with 190 votes.
English version :: Read in English: The Bulgarians have refused to sell nuclear reactors to Ukraine. Who is to blame – the Russians or Trump?