The probe is focusing on the contract’s terms, the circumstances of its signing and whether it has caused damage to the state, the prosecutor's office said in a statement on Wednesday. Letters have been sent requesting documents from the energy ministry, Bulgargaz and gas transmission system operator Bulgartransgaz.
In January 2023, Bulgargaz signed a 13-year agreement with Botas, enabling annual imports of 1.5 billion cubic meters of gas via the Turkish transmission infrastructure and liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals as part of Bulgaria's efforts to wean itself off Russian gas imports.
As part of the investigation, prosecutors searched the home of former caretaker energy minister Rosen Hristov, who served in this position from August 2022 to June 2023, to seize items potentially relevant to the case.
"The investigation is being conducted because in December 2022, an official did not take sufficient care in the management, administration and safeguarding of the property entrusted to him upon conclusion of the contract, which resulted in significant damage to Bulgargaz, as the crime is of particularly large proportions and constitutes a particularly serious case," the Sofia City prosecutor's office said.
On Wednesday, Hristov denied wrongdoing, claiming the search was a politically motivated action ultimately targeting Bulgarian president Rumen Radev who had appointed the caretaker cabinet.
"Nothing in the contract bothers me. I have repeatedly stated that if used properly, it is strategically important and can be profitable and ensure energy security not only for Bulgaria, but also for the entire region," Hristov said, as seen in a video published by private broadcaster bTV.
Under the contract, Bulgaria is paying some 1.05 million levs ($630,441/536,873 euro) per day to Botas for gas transmission capacity but the capacity allocation has remained largely unused, energy minister Zhecho Stankov told bTV in May. The price is expected to reach 1.1 million levs per day in 2026 and 1.2 million levs in 2027.
(SeeNews, July 10, 2025)