Bulgaria shivers as gas dwindles

By Vladislav Velev Darik Radio reporter, Sofia

Bulgaria's communist-era power stations rely on Russian gas

Millions of Bulgarians now live in colder homes because the shutdown of Russian gas supplies has hit the country's centralised municipal heating.

In communist times Bulgarians could always rely on gas from their giant Soviet neighbour. They cannot recall a time like this, when such a vital energy source was missing.

Adding to the misery, temperatures have plunged well below zero.

The gas shortage means colder radiators, because there is less power to heat water to the correct temperature.

"I feel almost desperate," says Virginia Boiadzhieva, mother of a three-year-old boy in the capital Sofia.

"The central heating is the only way we could warm our apartment - the centrally delivered hot water is the only option for us.

"If the heating goes we could use a fan heater - although it would be more expensive. But if the hot water stops we'll have to stay with my husband's parents. They have an electrically-powered boiler, but we don't."

Schools closed

Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev admits Bulgaria is facing a serious energy crisis, as it depends almost entirely on Russian gas.

The first to feel the impact were factories and municipal heating centres, which now have to switch to using diesel. But that takes about three days - so customers in the cities are feeling the chill.

Seventy-two schools in Bulgaria, reliant on gas-powered heating, were closed on Wednesday.

Energy Minister Petar Dimitrov has warned that the power system may not be able to cope with the extra demand for electricity.

Meanwhile the Mayor of Sofia, Boiko Borisov, has urged people to save electricity. "It's not about a lack of electricity, but if we start heating with it, Sofia's energy system will not be able to bear such a surge and the whole system will collapse," he warned.

At an emergency meeting on Tuesday Mr Borisov ordered a temporary switch-off of the decorative lighting on some of Sofia's buildings.

Bulgaria has some gas reserves, but they are not enough to keep the economy and ordinary life running smoothly for a long time.

Some of the biggest factories - like the brewery in Plovdiv and four bread factories in Varna - have had to close due to the lack of gas.

Bulgaria's plants are collectively losing at least 500m lev (