Bulgaria's grid operator ESO has put more than €182m this year into repairs, upgrades and new connections to the high-voltage network ahead of autumn and winter, the company said.

Crews have built or rebuilt more than 120 km of power lines. They renewed overhead lines in Sofia region and around Plovdiv, Burgas, Shumen and Gorna Oryahovitsa. Nearly 60 km of lines got new lightning-protection cables with built-in optical fibres, and workers cleared trees and brush along the overhead lines on nearly 11,000 decares (about 1,100 hectares).

At 110/20 kilovolt substations, the open-air 110 kilovolt switchgear has been fully rebuilt and put into service. The substations are in the regions of Sofia, Kyustendil, Blagoevgrad, Pazardzhik, Smolyan, Haskovo, Pleven, Razgrad, Targovishte and Veliko Tarnovo.

ESO says the upgrades make the grid safer, and digital control at substations lets crews react faster to faults caused by bad weather. The aim is for the equipment to work reliably in autumn and winter, and for the power system to be more secure and carry more electricity.

For repair work after faults, ESO has arranged special vehicles and access to hard-to-reach terrain. Mobile teams carry communication gear, tools and clothing for winter work.

Energy facilities are ready for winter, energy minister Iva Petrova said on 7 October. She said legal duties are being met and, where needed, crisis and emergency teams have been set up.