Almost 30% of Bulgarian households, or about 1.8 million people,

Almost 30% of Bulgarian households, or about 1.8 million people, fall into the category of energy poor. This is clear from an analysis by specialists from Net-Zero Lab, part of the Faculty of Economics of Sofia University " St. Kliment Ohridski ". They conducted a special interview on the topic of energy-vulnerable consumers in our country.

Despite this colossal number of 1.8 million people, however, the country still lacks effective protection mechanisms, which hinders the successful implementation of the liberalization of the electricity market for household consumers - a reform that will provide a number of benefits and new opportunities for households.

“If we as a country want to deal with this huge problem, it is good to work with a common strategy or long-term program for reducing energy poverty, in which the various financial support mechanisms are coordinated and not to rely only on compensations in a liberalized market, but also on other long-term instruments. ”, emphasizes energy expert Assoc. Prof. Teodora Peneva from the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences in the latest training video from the “Informed Consumer Choice ” series of Net-Zero Lab at the Faculty of Economics of Sofia University.

Assoc. Prof. Peneva points out that the key step before the liberalization of the household sector is the further development of the regulatory framework. And presents specific solutions and examples from European practice. Among the proposed measures are:

Establishment of an institution that manages an information system with data on income, household members and energy characteristics of buildings;

Determination of financial compensations for the energy poor, varying according to income and energy consumption;

Administrative measures for the narrower group of vulnerable consumers, such as a ban on power outages in winter and deferred payment of bills without penalties;

An information campaign on the correct determination of household composition and access to compensation.

You can see more on the topic in the video here:

Legislative changes on the topic are being prepared by the Council of Ministers

The topic of energy efficiency and vulnerable consumers will also be part of the government's priorities in the next few months.

The recently published Legislative Program of the Council of Ministers for the period July-December 2025 provides for changes to the Energy Efficiency Act to be introduced very soon. The draft amendments will be submitted by the Ministry of Energy to the Council of Ministers for preliminary consideration in August 2025, and its official submission is planned for September 2025.

The main objectives of the prepared amendments to the Energy Act are:

Introducing the requirements of Directive (EU) 2023/1791 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 September 2023 on energy efficiency and amending Regulation (EU) 2023/955;

Reducing primary and final energy consumption;

Introducing a requirement to reduce the final energy consumption of public authorities by at least 1.9% per year compared to 2021;

Introducing a requirement to renovate at least 3% per year of the total area of ​​public buildings;

Implementing effective mechanisms for managing and monitoring energy efficiency;

Promoting contracts with guaranteed results (ESCO models);

Stimulating investments in energy-efficient technologies and building renovation;

Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, improvement of air quality;

Improved living conditions, reduced energy costs, combating energy poverty;

Strengthening the role of end-users by improving access to information on energy consumption;

Creation of a National Decarbonization Fund.