Bulgaria scraps Bourgas-Alexandroupoulis pipeline, shelves Belene nuke - PM
Bulgaria will permanently pull out of the Bourgas-Alexandropoulis gas pipeline project, Prime Minister Boiko Borissov has told European Union ambassadors.Additionally, Bulgaria will freeze indefinitely planned construction of the Belene nuclear power plant because it was uncertain when the investment would be returned, the report said.The decision to scrap the construction of the Bourgas-Alexandroupoulis pipeline was made because of staunch resistance from residents of the Bulgarian Black Sea city of Bourgas and surrounding region, Borissov said. The proposed pipeline was planned to traverse through protected areas. "We have no clear guarantees as to when we will see a return on the investment. We also saw what is happening in the Gulf of Mexico," Borissov said, referring to the oil spill in the US which has caused an unprecedented catastrophe.Residents in Bourgas and neighbouring resort towns have long opposed the construction of the pipeline, which they fear would irreparably damage the tourism business in the region in case of an environmental mishap involving the pipeline.