Bulgaria only has gasoline reserves for one month, as it prepares for the start of US sanctions against the Russian company Lukoil, which owns the country’s largest oil refinery and the largest storage and pipeline infrastructure, says the president of the state reserves agency.
Bulgaria has gasoline reserves for about 35 days and diesel reserves for 50 days, stated Assen Asenov, quoted by the Bulgarian news agency BTA.
Energy analysts have explained that Bulgaria has more oil and petroleum product stocks outside the country, but must import them before Lukoil's pipeline network falls under sanctions, according to Reuters.
"50% of the ready-to-use fuels are in other EU countries, as well as some of the oil, which means that the Government needs to activate these contracts as soon as possible," said Martin Vladimirov, Director of the Energy and Climate Program at the Center for the Study of Democracy in Sofia.
Last month, the US and the UK imposed sanctions on Lukoil and Rosneft, the two largest oil companies in Russia, due to Moscow's war in Ukraine, threatening their operations still spanning across Europe.
The US sanctions, set to take effect on November 21, have raised concerns about fuel supply before the arrival of winter in Bulgaria, where Lukoil has hundreds of gas stations and operates the refinery in Burgas, a crucial component of the company's overseas commercial empire.
Bulgaria, which will adopt the euro currency on January 1, 2026, has taken measures to secure its supply since the sanctions were announced, temporarily banning exports of certain fuels, mainly diesel and aviation fuel, to EU member states.
Last week, its parliament passed a law allowing it to take over the refinery and sell it to a new owner to shield the plant from US sanctions.
This week, Bulgarian authorities conducted inspections and implemented security measures at the Burgas refinery, in what authorities described as a step to protect critical infrastructure.