Bulgaria's State Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (SEWRC) agreed at a meeting on September 27 2011 to increase natural gas prices by 6.67 per cent to 594.37 leva a 1000 cu m from October 1.
The regulator also approved a hike of up to 12.12 per cent in heating tariffs.
Originally, SEWRC had estimated that the price of gas should go up by 8.6 per cent, but later found buffers which allowed it to trim the proposed increase.
SEWRC expects that the country will negotiate favourable gas tariffs with Scotland's oil and gas company Melrose Resources, which is currently engaged in gas extraction near Kaliakra, in the Bulgarian sector of the Black Sea.
Bulgaria's state-run gas monopoly Bulgargas had been seeking an increase of 13.86 per cent in gas prices to 634.44 leva a 1000 cu m from October. The company said on September 27 that if the proposed spike in gas tariffs was delayed, the country will see a steeper increase in January.