Bulgaria hands EU its recovery plan, seeks extension on coal

SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — Bulgaria’s caretaker prime minister says his country has set the future decarbonization of the economy as a priority in its pandemic recovery plan submitted formally for consideration to the European Commission. But Prime Minister Stefan Yanev also warned that Bulgaria will try to negotiate for itself a 10-year extension in the European Union target deadline for phasing out coal in electricity production. The Balkan country’s power generation system depends on the pollutant fuel, which is extracted locally, and unions fear its elimination would result in huge job losses. Bulgaria has been for months embroiled in a political crisis amid a surge in coronavirus infections.