The anti-trust regulator fined the biggest heating utility in the country, Toplofikatsia Sofia, a total of 338,094 levs ($230,000/173,000 euro) for abuse of dominant market position.
Toplofikatsia Sofia has abused its dominant position by delaying the introduction of a new competitor to the energy distribution market, the Commission for Protection of Competition (CPC) said in a statement.
The company has refused to sign a contract with PMU Engineering for the delivery of measuring devices for a period of three months. During that time Toplofikatsia Sofia has taken steps to attract the customers of its competitor, it added.
Toplofikatsia Sofia has the capacity to produce six million megawatthours (MWh) of heating energy and 850,000 MWh of electricity per year.