AES and NEK are working to finalize the amendment to Maritza’s PPA by the end of the year

Ноември 20, 2015

AES and NEK are working hard to reach a successful closing of the amendment to Maritza’s PPA by the end of 2015, the Executive Director of AES Bulgaria, Olivier Marquette said today during the annual press conference of AES Galabovo. As previously disclosed, AES and NEK agreed to the terms of the amendment to the PPA of TPP Galabovo in April.  According to the agreement between AES and NEK, TPP Galabovo will decrease the capacity price by 14%, which will lead to BGN 50 million annual savings for NEK. The agreement will become effective after the payment of arrears by NEK to AES, which currently represent an amount of approximately EUR 300 million.

Since the current deadline for effectiveness of the PPA amendment is November 30th, we intend to agree on an extension of deadline. At the same time, we are confident that in 2016 NEK will be able to pay its suppliers, including AES on time, as a result of the measures taken by the Government, to solve the financial deficit of NEK, Mr. Marquette said.

Ivan Tzankov, General Commercial Director of AES Bulgaria, clarified that TPP Galabovo represents only 9% of the electricity price for the regulated market. “The AES Galabovo price per MWh at full load is BGN 132/MWh – similar to the average electricity price of NEK’s mix”, Tzankov said, adding that timely payments by NEK will help us make payments to MMI, which employs several thousand local people.

Mr. Marquette announced that in 2015 AES invested more than 1.3 million euro in Corporate Social Responsibility programs in Galabovo. The areas of focus of the program are infrastructure, education and healthcare. The main project in 2015 is the rehabilitation of the Youth Center in Galabovo, for an estimated cost of EUR 1.1 million. AES is also fully supporting the school in Obruchishte and is financing additional lessons for the students.

The construction of TPP AES 3C Maritza East 1 (AES Galabovo) is the largest investment in Bulgaria over the last 25 years, with a total investment of EUR 1.3 billion. It currently provides more than 500 direct jobs, and more than 2,000 indirect jobs, with 420 Bulgarian companies supplying of the plant.

Mr. Marquette proudly shared that in 2015 the Maritza plant reached three years without a Lost Time Incident, both for AES employees and contractors. The Maritza plant reached a generation record of 389 GWh in July 2015 and achieved commercial availability of 99.5% from January through November. Additionally, the Maritza plant achieved 100% of compliance with its environmental requirements.