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Nazrin Abdul

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Bulgaria has emphasized Azerbaijan’s key role in diversifying natural gas supply sources and enhancing the energy security of Southeast Europe.

As reported by Azernews, this was noted during the Bulgaria–Azerbaijan Business Forum held in Sofia as part of the 7th session of the Intergovernmental Joint Commission. The event included B2B meetings aimed at expanding economic cooperation between the two countries.

Deputy Minister of Energy of Bulgaria, Iva Petrova, said the forum provided a new opportunity to further strengthen bilateral relations.

"The spirit of cooperation and productive discussions developed during the 7th meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Economic Cooperation with Azerbaijan are now continuing in this format. Our strategic partnership with Azerbaijan has entered a new phase," Petrova noted.

She underlined that the energy sector remains a key priority in the effective cooperation between the two countries.

Boyko Takov, Executive Director of the Bulgarian Small and Medium Enterprises Promotion Agency (BSMEPA), highlighted additional promising areas for collaboration — including industrial equipment and engineering solutions, food and agricultural processing technologies, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, consumer goods, logistics and transport, as well as information technology and digital transition.

“Our common goal is to develop relations from trade to partnership — from import and export to joint investments, innovation, and value creation,” Takov added.

The forum brought together representatives of 80 Bulgarian and 25 Azerbaijani companies. Bulgaria currently imports Azerbaijani natural gas through the Greece–Bulgaria Interconnector (IGB), which has an annual transmission capacity of 3 billion cubic meters.