There Are No Alternatives to Russian Oil for Bulgaria Now - Company

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - There are currently no alternatives to Russian oil for Bulgaria, Lukoil's subsidiary Lukoil Neftochim Burgas said.

"Currently, we do not see real alternatives, since there are no other types of oil on our market. Technically, we can process oil from the Middle East and North Africa, but this will reduce the refinery's capacity," the local BTV television channel quoted the company as saying.

According to the channel, experts predict a rise in fuel prices in Bulgaria by 20 to 30 percent in the event of an embargo on Russian oil.

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said earlier that the sixth package of European sanctions against Russia would include cutting off new banks from SWIFT, new sanctions "for disinformation" and restrictions on oil imports.

Agence France-Presse reported on Tuesday, citing unnamed EU officials, that Bulgaria and the Czech Republic could request an exemption from the EU's embargo on Russian oil.

Earlier, Slovak Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Richard Sulik said his country would insist on being exempted from the embargo on the purchase of oil in Russia, which the EU countries are going to introduce in a new package of anti-Russian sanctions. Hungarian government spokesman Zoltan Kovacs also said that Budapest does not support sanctions against gas and oil from Russia.

The EU, after the start of Moscow's special operation to demilitarize Ukraine, has adopted five packages of sanctions against individuals, organizations, the financial and energy sectors of Russia.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov earlier said the Western sanctions are very serious, and Russia was preparing for them in advance.

Western countries announced a series of new sanctions against Russia over Moscow's special military operation in Ukraine, and Europe has begun to voice statements about the need to reduce dependence on Russian energy resources more intensively. The course to reject oil and gas supplies from Russia is actively supported by the United States, which calls on alternative producers to increase their production.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said the policy of containment and weakening of Russia is a long-term strategy of the West, and the sanctions dealt a serious blow to the entire world economy. According to Putin, the West's main goal is to worsen the lives of millions of people. He said the US and EU had effectively defaulted on their obligations to Russia, freezing its foreign exchange reserves. He also said current events draw a line under the global dominance of the West in both politics and economics.