The idea of the state acquiring the only oil refinery in Bulgaria – Lukoil Neftohim in Burgas – as proposed on 29 January by the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (DPS) – New Beginning, affiliated with Delyan Peevski and MECH party, split opinions in parliament.

• Two opposition parties call on the state to acquire Lukoil

The proposal was rejected by GERB and We Continue the Change. Delyan Peevski, leader of DPS-New Beginning, and Kiril Petkov, co-chairman of We Continue the Change traded accusations.
“What Delyan Peevski wants to do to Lukoil is the same thing he did when he bankrupted the once profit-making company Bulgartabac,” said Kiril Petkov in response to the accusations by the leader of DPS-New Beginning that he was trying to sell Lukoil Neftohim off to American companies he was allegedly consulting. “Imagine, if we allow that man, by giving him public money, to control Lukoil, to appoint some boss to run the so-called state enterprise, but in effect, to destroy Lukoil and also the jobs, and then Burgas going down the same road as Blagoevgrad which cannot recover yet from the loss of a major employer like Bulgartabac,” Kiril Petkov said.