Toplofikacia Sofia and Energy Market fined for pre-arranged trades
EWRC found that Toplofikacia Sofia and Energy Market acted by prior arrangement, trading block and hourly products on the intraday segment of the Bulgarian exchange at prices and volumes that departed significantly from market levels, and fined each EUR 53,969.86.
On this page
The decision
- Authority
- Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (EWRC), Bulgaria
- Decided
- 18 March 2026
- Participants
- Toplofikacia Sofia EAD; Energy Market AD
- Commodity
- Electricity
- Market
- Intraday segment of the Bulgarian Independent Energy Exchange (IBEX)
- Conduct period
- November 2020 to January 2021
- REMIT
- Article 5 (Market manipulation)
- Type of conduct
- Pre-arranged trades
- Penalty
- EUR 53,969.86 for each company
- Status
- Appeal possible to the Sofia City Administrative Court within 14 days
What EWRC found
At a closed session on 18 March 2026, EWRC adopted a decision imposing property sanctions on Toplofikacia Sofia EAD and Energy Market AD for breach of the REMIT ban on market manipulation (Article 5). It held that the two companies acted by prior arrangement, which it called a prohibited market practice within the meaning of REMIT.
The conduct was trading on the intraday segment of the Bulgarian Independent Energy Exchange between November 2020 and January 2021, at prices and in quantities that deviated significantly from market levels. EWRC found that Toplofikacia Sofia sold electricity to Energy Market below market prices through block and hourly products, and that these actions gave misleading signals to the market about the price of wholesale energy products.
The release states no number of trades, volumes, prices or the companies' position.
This account is based on the official public releases. EWRC's explanation of Article 74a(8) of the Energy Act states that decisions and protocols concerning REMIT Article 3 and 5 breaches are not published on its website.
The penalty
Each company received a property sanction of EUR 53,969.86, calculated under EWRC's methodology for sanctions and fines under Article 224d of the Energy Act; the total is about EUR 108,000. The decision can be appealed to the Administrative Court of Sofia City within 14 days of notification. It is EWRC's fifth decision imposing sanctions for market manipulation under REMIT, and EWRC said it continues to work on other proceedings for manipulation and insider trading.
For a surveillance function
EWRC's explanation combines an arrangement between the two companies with trades at prices and volumes significantly different from market levels. Its finding concerns the misleading price signals from those trades; the release does not describe a test based on an advance arrangement alone.
Sources
- EWRC, news release, 19 March 2026 (Press release, in Bulgarian)
- EWRC, news release, 17 November 2023 (Press release, in Bulgarian)
- ACER, overview of REMIT sanction decisions (ACER register)
Sources read on 27 October 2026. This page restates what the authority published and adds no finding of its own. A decision under appeal is not final, and its status may have changed since: check the source before relying on it.