Georgiev, Todorov & Co. is representing BMF Port Burgas in oral arguments before the Court of Justice of European Union in a Preliminary Reference Procedure related to a ruling by the Administrative Court of Sofia.
According to Georgiev, Todorov & Co., the Preliminary Reference Procedure was initiated by the Administrative Court, Sofia City under art. 267 TFEU. The case involves a dispute between BMF Port Burgas — the concession holder of Burgas East 2 and Burgas West port terminals — with an unnamed electricity distribution company related to an administrative act issued by Bulgaria's Energy and Water Regulatory Commission under Art. 22 of the country's Energy Act. According to Georgiev, Todorov & Co, "the Commission held that the dispute over connection to the system and for payment of access and transmission fees should be rendered in favor of the concession holder in his capacity of industrial consumer. The questions raised before the CJEU concern the rights of the transmission system operators and the distribution system operators under Directive 2009/72/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council. Moreover, the Court shall answer whether the requirement contained in Bulgarian law to the operators for owning property rights over the systems which they operate is in accordance with European Union law."
The Georgiev, Todorov & Co. team included lawyers Miglena Peneva, Mariya Derelieva and Tsvetelina Dimitrova.
At oral argument, the firm reports, Miglena Peneva argued "that the Directive should be interpreted as not precluding national legislations, which requires from operators to own the property or other legal rights on the transmission system or on the distributions system operated by them," and that "the requirement hereinabove [sic] is in accordance with the aim of Directive 2009/72/EC and also encourages the internal electricity market."
According to the firm, the preliminary ruling should "provide substantial insight on ... whether it is possible for industrial consumers to directly connect to the transmission system or the current voltage level determines connection to the distribution system." In addition, the firm reports, "the ruling of the CJEU shall be of significance for governing the relations between the operators and the consumers in the internal electricity market."
