ECONOMIC DIMENSIONS OF THE ENERGY AND CLIMATE TRANSITION IN BULGARIA: REGIONAL CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
Keywords:
energy transition, decarbonization, regional development, economic effects, sustainable development.Abstract
The study analyzes the economic dimensions of the energy and climate transition
in Bulgaria, focusing on regional differences, structural risks, and opportunities for sustainable
development. The analysis examines the interrelationships between greenhouse gas emissions, the
country's energy structure, European decarbonization policies, and their economic effects at the
regional levelThe methodology is based on a comparative analysis of official European and national
sources, including data on emissions by country and sector, EU regulatory frameworks, and
environmental assessments by the European Environment Agency (European Parliament, 2024;
European Environment Agency, 2025). A combined approach is applied, combining a quantitative
comparison of emission profiles and a qualitative analysis of the economic consequences of climate
policies.
The results show that Bulgaria is at a critical stage of energy transition, characterized by
high dependence on carbon-intensive energy sources and significant territorial imbalances. Coal
regions, in particular the Maritsa Basin, are characterised by increased economic vulnerability due
to the concentration of employment and industrial production related to fossil fuels. European
policies-including Fit for 55, the European Climate Law, the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS and
ETS2), and the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) - have a direct impact on
production costs, industrial competitiveness and investment decisions, creating both economic risks
and opportunities for technological modernisation and structural transformation.
An analysis of institutional practices based on environmental reports (Environmental
Statement, 2024) shows that sustainable resource management-reducing energy consumption,
switching to renewable electricity, improving waste management, and digitizing processes-leads to
measurable savings and increased efficiency. Similar effects are observed in the agricultural sector,
where the application of environmental and integrated approaches contributes to increased
economic sustainability and more efficient use of natural resources (Pencheva, 2025a; Minkova et
al., 2024). These approaches can be applied in Bulgarian public institutions and enterprises as a tool
for simultaneously improving economic and environmental performance.
References
1. Pencheva, T. (2025a). The impact of pes.cides on ecosystems and the role of biological
control in sustainable agriculture. In Proceedings of the Scien.fic Conference “Knowledge,
Science, Innova.on, Technologies” (July 11, 2025, Veliko Tarnovo, pp. 1108–1120). Institute of
Knowledge, Science and Innovation. ISSN 2815-3480 (CD).
2. Pencheva, T. (2025b). Plant protec.on in vegetable crops: Integrated and ecological
approaches to sustainable agriculture. In Proceedings of the Scien.fic Conference “Knowledge,
Science, Innova.on, Technologies” (July 11, 2025, Veliko Tarnovo, pp. 1099–1107). Institute of
Knowledge, Science and Innovation. ISSN 2815-3480 (CD).
3. Pencheva, T. (2025c). Current status and prospects of greenhouse vegetable produc.on
in Bulgaria. In Proceedings of the Scien.fic Conference “Knowledge, Science, Innova.on,
Technologies” (July 11, 2025, Veliko Tarnovo, pp. 1085–1098). Institute of Knowledge, Science
and Innovation. ISSN 2815-3480 (CD).
4. European Investment Bank. (2024). Environmental statement 2024: Environmental
performance and resource management. https://www.eib.org/attachments/lucalli/
20240025_environmental_statement_2024_en.pdf
5. European Environment Agency. (2024). Circular economy country profile 2024: Bulgaria.
https://www.eea.europa.eu/en/topics/in-depth/circular-economy/country-profiles-on-circular-
economy/circular-economy-country-profiles-2024/bulgaria_2024-ce-country-profile_final.pdf
6. European Environment Agency. (2025). Europe’s environment 2025: Bulgaria country
profile. https://www.eea.europa.eu
7. European Parliament. (2025). Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM):
Implementa.on and transi.on period. https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/
ip_25_3088
8. Ilieva, T., Karova, A., & Ivanova, M. (2025). Sustainable agriculture through integrated
pest management: Strategies for effective implementation. In E. G. Nathanail, N. Gavanas, & E.
Adamos (Eds.), Climate crisis and resilient transporta.on systems (CSUM 2024) (pp. 511–520).
Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-82818-8_38
9. Karova, A., & Ilieva-Pencheva, T. (2024). Challenges and opportunities for utilizing
ecosystem services in the sustainable management of agroecosystems. Agricultural Sciences,
16(43, Suppl.), 64–71. https://doi.org/10.22620/agrisci.2024.43.025
10. Krastev, B., Petkov, P., Angelova, V., Angelov, S., & Nechev, T. (2023). The role of
p r o j e c t fi n a n c i n g f o r s u s t a i n a b l e d e v e l o p m e n t o f t h e g r e e n e c o n o m y.
INVEST4EXCELLENCE Project, University of Agribusiness and Rural Development. https://
virtualcampus.invest-alliance.eu/docs/eoscrepo/ac9dc743-ea16-4b96-9ea7-a1f7ce0efedc.pdf
11. LRQA. (n.d.). CBAM and EU ETS2: What you need to know. https://www.lrqa.com/en/
insights/articles/cbam-euets2/
12. Minkova, I., Karova, A., & Ilieva-Pencheva, T. (2024). Role of regulating ecosystem
services in reducing the use of chemical pesticides. Agricultural Sciences, 16(43, Suppl.), 56–
63. https://doi.org/10.22620/agrisci.2024.43.024
13. Yakimov, D., Plachkov, D., Dimitrova, S., & Arabska, E. (2025). Study on the
possibilities for production of by-products from plant raw material. In Book of abstracts of the
Slovak Economic Associa.on Mee.ng (SEAM 2025) (pp. 39–40). https://slovakecon.sk/
seam2025/abstracts.html
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 New knowledge Journal of science
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
