Energy Minister: Issues in high voltage network fixed

By 5 p.m. all problems in the high voltage network have been fixed, Energy Minister Rumen Radev Sunday told a briefing at the Energy Ministry. Out of more than 20 affected substations, every single one has regular connectivity, Radev added.

Nearly 500,000 electricity consumers are without power, the minister said, with 800,000 affected this morning. According to him, over 430 settlements were supplied electricity during the day. "Electrodistribution Grid West" reports over 770 affected settlements and over 300,000 customers. The largest number of monitored permanent power outages are in Blagoevgrad, Vidin, Montana, Vratsa, Sofia region, Pleven, Pernik, Lovech and Kyustendil. "Electrodistribution Grid South" - 55 locations without power supply and over 300, 000 customers. The most serious situation is in Stara Zagora, Haskovo, Sliven, a small part in Plovdiv, and some villages in Smolyan. "Electrodistribution Grid North" - 779 settlements - 196,000 affected subscribers, Radev outlined.

The situation with the medium- and low-voltage networks is severe, the situation is still complicated and emergency teams continue their work, the minister said.

Hundreds of colleagues from the power system operator and the electricity distribution companies work in these complicated hours, Radev said. This is the third weekend in a row that the situation has been complicated, he added.

The facilities of the gas transmission system across the country are working normally, Radev said, adding that "Toplofikatsiya-Sofia" has had few breakdowns.