The price of BGN 5 per liter of sunflower oil in shops is speculation – this was announced by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Korneliya Ninova during a briefing after the meeting of the Council of Ministers today.
„The production price per liter of sunflower oil is BGN 2. You understand that the difference from 2 to 5 is not a justified profit, nor is it a justification for the increased fuel prices. Today’s claim that the suspension of sunflower seed exports from Ukraine to Russia is one of the reasons for the rise in prices is unfounded. At the moment in Bulgaria we have 1 million and 500 thousand tons of sunflower seeds, which is enough for 4 and a half years of oil production. There is no shortage of raw materials. What we have noticed lately is that sunflower seed producers and oil producers are keeping quantities in warehouses, in factories, waiting for the price to rise or to export it at higher prices, because there is a shortage in Europe. Apart from the market principle, there is also a state. I want to tell them – we will not allow a few to become millionaires in a few days and nights on the backs of the Bulgarian people and there are mechanisms to make this happen.„, Ninova explained and added:
„As of today, we are driving the Commission for Protection of Competition with a signal of monopoly, cartel, dominance – all possible inspections. The Consumer Protection Commission has been inspecting for several days. We will go to each warehouse and find out what is happening there. The Commodity Exchanges and Markets travels to all markets, exchanges, to find out what is hidden there.„
Minister of Finance Asen Vassilev confirmed that there were attempts to cartel and speculate on prices by keeping the products in stock. He commented on the wheat in our country:
„Currently there are about 3 million tons of wheat in Bulgaria, about 300,000 of them are in reserve. The government today decided to purchase 1 million and 100 tons of these. We currently have warehouses for 14 million tons of wheat. So we have no storage problems. Even the new crop, which is between 7 and 8 million tons, can be safely harvested. As for the wheat, the decision has been made, and the money – allocated by the Ministry of Agriculture and can proceed to purchase wheat. There is money allocated for sunflower, but also corn. The aim is to provide money for fodder for farmers. The total amount is BGN 1 billion and BGN 100 million.“
At the moment, there is no ban on wheat exports, Vassilev said. According to him, the trucks are being stopped at the border to check their documents against the background of what is happening worldwide. He is adamant that there are enough fuels at this stage and it is not planned to buy one.
Head of Kiril Petkov’s cabinet Lena Borislavova commented that the topic of today’s meeting was the war in Ukraine, its consequences and the Ukrainian citizens entering our territory. According to her, Bulgaria has joined the mechanisms for European protection and support, which will allow accelerated inclusion of Ukrainian citizens in the European labor market, including in our country. Appropriate conditions will be provided so as to avoid the humanitarian crisis in our country and to allow integration, so that these people are not dependent only on social benefits and the budget.
„In this regard, a decision was made to provide humanitarian aid, short-term – initially for 3 months, to be provided to Ukrainian citizens who entered our territory and who have no home, protection and no means of survival. This assistance amounts to up to BGN 40 per day for a period of 3 months. The goal is to give them a head start, after which they can effectively enter the labor market in our country or if they decide to move to another country where they have relatives or want to restructure their lives in another way.“
„The amount was voted on the basis of actual costs. Currently, there are about 30,000 Ukrainian citizens in the country. By March 31, they must register as temporary residents and temporary refugee status. All new arrivals must register to receive assistance. The numbers change every day. „, said Minister Vassilev.
Borislavova said that this measure will also support the Bulgarian tourism sector, which in the current situation can expect some form of outflow of tourists.
„The measure will be provided to hotels and other accommodation facilities that have expressed readiness to be included in the government’s plan to provide this assistance to refugees.“
Bulgaria will not send fighters to Ukraine and was not discussed today, she said in response to a journalist’s question.
During the briefing it became clear that today at the meeting a decision was made to instruct the Minister of e-Government to build a technological capability for electronic identification via mobile device within 2022. This is an additional opportunity for remote identification of users and will be applied in parallel together with the procedure under appeal and conducted by the Ministry of Interior.
