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Court delays trial of LUKOIL subsidiary vs Bulgaria custom service

The Bulgarian Customs Service revoked the LUKOIL Bulgaria license on July 22 due to the fact that the company failed to install remote control meters timely

SOFIA, September 28 (Itar-Tass) —— The Sofia Administrative Court delayed the hearings in the lawsuit, which the Russian oil company LUKOIL filed against the Bulgarian Customs Service, until November 9. The LUKOIL Bulgaria subsidiary filed a lawsuit against the Bulgarian Customs Service over the case for the illegal revocation of the fuel-keeping license at the oil refinery Neftokhim Burgas and for blocking the oil terminal Rosenets. The Bulgarian Customs Service sealed up the stocks of the largest Russian oil producer in the country in July under the accusations that the latter did not install special meters to levy excise duties timely.

The trial was postponed over an uncompleted technical expertise, which was seeking to find whether the measurement and control equipment is being installed on the foresaid oil refinery and the oil terminal under the schedule, and to set the cost and duration of works. The experts asked for 45 more workdays to complete the expertise.

The Bulgarian Customs Service revoked the LUKOIL Bulgaria license on July 22 due to the fact that the company failed to install remote control meters timely. The oil refinery was suspended. On August 1, the Bulgarian Supreme Administrative Court lifted the sanctions, which the customs services previously imposed, finding them unlawful and permitted to continue the oil production at the oil refinery LUKOIL Bulgaria before the court proceedings in the Sofia Administrative Court.

Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov interfered in the conflict personally and after the negotiations with LUKOIL CEO Vagit Alekperov stated that the Russian company met its liabilities to mount the measuring equipment at the oil refinery by December 2011.

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