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Monday, January 23, 2012

Coal miners strike makes Bulgaria halt power export

Monday, 23 Jan 2012

It is reported that the strike of coal miners in the Maritsa Iztok made the thermal power plants to shut down power facilities generating about 1000 MW. This amounts to about one third of the entire capacity of the Maritsa Iztok and AEC Galabovo thermal power plants or one unit of the Kozloduy NPP. Power generation has been decreased because of a fuel deficit as coal supplies from the Maritsa Iztok mines had been halted.

Currently two units of the Varna TPP manage to compensate for the stopped facilities in the plants hit by the strike. However, Bulgaria was compelled to suspend power export for indefinite time. Recently over 1000 miners and trade union leaders staged a protest rally in the town of Radnevo.

The miners went on strike at 8pm on January 15 demanding BGN 1000 bonuses for each employee for the company's record coal output in 2011. The labor stoppage has cost the mining company more than BGN 1 million a day. (sourced paper.standartnews.com)

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