ENEL MARITSA EAST 3 TO BE RENAMED TO CONTOUR GLOBAL MARITSA EAST 3

US investment fund Contour Global, the new owner of Bulgaria's coal-fired power plant Enel Maritsa East 3, has requested a revision of the facility's electricity production licence following a planned change in the company's name, data by the State Energy and Water Regulatory Commission (SEWRC) shows.

Once the regulator clears the licence amendments, the plant will be renamed to Contour Global Maritsa East 3.

Italy's power group Enel SpA announced plans to sell the plant two years ago. The company picked the buyer for Maritsa East 3 in mid-March. The US fund then bought a 73 per cent stake in the plant for 230 million euro through its subsidiary ContourGlobal Bulgaria Holdings.

At that time, Enel gave no specific reason for the company's withdrawal from Enel Maritsa East 3, saying only that the plant was simply not in line with the development strategy of the group.

In 2009, Enel was named investor of the year for its renovation of the facility, which cost more than 700 million euro.

The power plant, with a capacity of 908 MW, ended 2010 with a revenue of 231 million euro, while its profit made up 69 million euro.

Meanwhile, Enel also plans to leave the Bulgarian market and sell all its renewable energy capacities in the country.