Start of the energy transition: More than 30 million euros for rehabilitation and retraining in Kyustendil

Kyustendil will continue its economic transformation thanks to the first European funds earmarked for regions in transition. A total of 122 million euros have been set aside for this Bulgarian province from the Just Transition Fund, which is priority number 4 in the "Regional Development" Program 2021-2027 (RDP 2021-2027). The money will only be used for the province in question and cannot be redistributed.

It is through this fund that the EU supports the fair energy transition in Bulgaria, with a total budget for its three coal regions - Stara Zagora, Kyustendil and Pernik - of 1.2 billion euros.

The EU funds are managed by the Monitoring Committees, with sub-committees created in the three affected areas. Their role is to ensure the connection between the interests and needs of the population and to present the support opportunities that are provided at the national level. The first meeting of the subcommittee in Kyustendil was held a few days ago.

The most important task before us is not to look for obstructions or flaws in the proposed options, but to implement various ideas and initiatives by consensus in order to be able to use this financial resource that has been offered to us," said the provincial governor of Kyustendil Alexander Pandurski during the roundtable discussion event "Realization of opportunities", organized by Brand Media Bulgaria.

The event is part of the "Transition of Opportunities" project, financed as part of the cohesion policy of the European Union.

The initial funding

The first program under which money from the Just Transition Fund (JTF) will be available is for energy efficiency measures, such as the energy renovation of buildings. Its budget is 16.5 million euros, and it should start within a few months.

According to Pandurski, the money will cover the buildings in the province that have remained unclassified under the "Support for sustainable energy renovation of the residential building stock - Stage I" program within the framework of the National Plan for Recovery and Sustainability, financed by the European Union.

The important thing is that we create a procedure that will enable us actually to utilize the money," Pandurski told Economic.bg.

The second administrative procedure, which will also start in the coming months, is “Social support for the employment of workers in the affected sectors or retraining of workers”. Eligible candidates for it are only the Bobov Dol Thermal Power Plant and the mines in Bobov Dol. According to it, 15 million euros are provided, of which 10 million is from the JTF and 5 million is national co-financing.

Those who will be able to carry out the retraining of the workers in the affected enterprise are the trade unions with their training organizations (KNSB, KT "Podkrepa") and the employers' organizations (KRIB, Union for Private Economic Enterprise, Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI). During the roundtable event, the regional coordinator of KNSB-Kyustendil Yani Georgiev stated that the trade union is ready to begin the training of the workers at the TPP.

It is important for me to preserve the labor force on the territory of Kyustendil," said Pandurski.

However, if the intended funding is not used, it will not be lost. It remains at the disposal of the provincial authorities and can be transferred to other programs.

Other programs

Towards the end of the year, funds will be allocated for diversification and adaptation of small and medium-sized enterprises to the economic transition – specifically, investments in new technologies. Under this program, a total of 125 million euros is planned, but it is not yet clear how the money will be distributed among the three affected regions.

The opening of a procedure for the creation of industrial parks and zones, for which a total of 70 million euros is planned, is also pending, but it is not clear how the money will be distributed among the three regions. In the version submitted to the RDP, the municipalities were not beneficiaries, but with the proposal of the Kyustendil subcommittee, they were included and will be able to become beneficiaries, explained Pandurski.

The private sector needs to position itself within the [planned] industrial park, but the municipalities also need funds in order to be able to build the infrastructure of the park, which will be at the service of the private sector."

Bobov Dol TPP is on the right track

According to the provincial governor, Bobov Dol TPP is approaching the problem in a smart way. This will help transform the plant, rather than shut it down.

They have good ideas that are part of the green transition. An approach where the employer, in order not to lose what he has in terms of power and capabilities, adapts to the green transition," said the governor.

Pandurski explained that an example of this is the photovoltaic park, which is being built next to the plant and will begin functioning this summer. The TPP is also creating a connection to the gas distribution network, which will enable it to be supplied with gas that can be used in several ways. One of them is the replacement of fuel oil, which is expensive and very polluting – so, the ignition of the boilers will be done with gas going forward. Another project is for 5 gas piston engines with 42 MWh power to be installed in the TPP.

The thermal power station will remain the energy heart of the Southwest region, and though the production of electricity will be in a new way, it will be combined production."

According to Pandurski, the situation with the energy transition in Kyustendil is much different from that in Stara Zagora. According to him, the approach of the TPP is different and responds exactly to what the EU wants to implement as a green transition in the Bulgarian energy sector.

Use the money

According to Pandurski, the justice of the transition is a relative term, since the money is never enough, and there will always be disaffected people who will say: "it wasn't fair to us".

This money has been agreed upon, now you have it, go ahead and use it. Because we can't absorb resources is given to us simply by thinking and talking a lot," he told the business reps.

He gave an example of the closure of the mines in Kyustendil and Bobov Dol years ago, which drove many people out of these cities. Now, according to him, the situation is different, as there are European funds to continue this transition.

Territorial plans and everything connected to them have been a mere talking point until now. However, with the start of work of the Monitoring Committee and the sub-committees, things are getting off the ground, concluded the provincial governor.

Co-financed by the European Union. The views and opinions expressed, however, are entirely those of their author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the European Union nor the European Commission is responsible for them.

Translated by Tzvetozar Vincent Iolov