The fourth edition of the "Energy and Climate" Winter School, a collaborative effort between the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration at SU "St. Kliment Ohridski" and "Utilities" magazine, was successfully held on February 15 and 16. The training took place at the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration building and was attended by 32 students, PhD candidates, and young professionals from energy companies, along with 17 lecturers from both business and academia.

The event received support from prominent energy and technology firms, as well as sector associations. Event sponsors included Kozloduy NPP, Electrohold Bulgaria, M-Gas, National Electric Company, and OMV Petrom, while partners included AES Bulgaria, Bulgarian Association Natural Gas, Veolia, and Vertis Environmental Finance.

The opening ceremony of the winter school featured Assoc. Prof. Atanas Georgiev, head of the master's program "Energy Markets and Services" and Dean of the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration at SU "St. Kliment Ohridski", Gergana Manolova, Director of International Cooperation and Business Relations at “M-Gas", Svetoslav Ivanov, Chairman of the Bulgarian Association Natural Gas, Todor Matev, Head of the Trade Network Department at Electrohold Sales EAD, and Dr. Pavel Sheitanov, Corporate Trader at Vertis. In their remarks, they emphasized the importance of advancing knowledge and skills in the energy and industrial sectors and reaffirmed their organizations' dedication to educational initiatives. They cited the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration's active role in advancing sectoral knowledge as an example.

During the opening, Assoc. Prof. Atanas Georgiev also introduced several master's programs offered by the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration, including the longstanding "Energy Markets and Services" program with over 18 years of history and more than 550 graduates to date, a new English-language program developed jointly with the Physics Faculty pending accreditation from the International Atomic Energy Agency titled "Nuclear Technologies, Management, and Innovations" and the "Responsible and Sustainable Governance" program. Recruitment for some master's programs at the faculty takes place until the second half of September each year, while for others, it extends until the end of January. The summer and winter schools organized by the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration and Utilities magazine build upon the positive experiences of energy programs collaborating with industry practitioners.

The speakers at this year's winter school included:

• Assoc. Prof. Atanas Georgiev - Dean of the Faculty of Economics and Business Administration at SU "St. Kliment Ohridski"
• Boyan Rashev, Managing Partner, denkstatt Bulgaria
• Vincent Gilles, Group Chief Financial Officer, Infinity (Egypt)
• Eng. Dimitar Yordanov, Sales Manager in the "Intelligent Infrastructure" department, Siemens Bulgaria
• Eng. Deyan Vasilev, Sales Manager in the "Intelligent Infrastructure" department, Siemens Bulgaria
• Dr. Eng. Ivaylo Naydenov, Executive Director, BFIEC
• Iliya Levkov and Dr. Eng. Stefan Apostolov, members of the Board of Directors of Industrial Cluster Electric Vehicles
• Assoc. Prof. Krassen Stanchev, SU "St. Kliment Ohridski"
• Krasimir Zivachki, NEK EAD
• Dr. Pavel Sheitanov, Corporate Trader, Vertis
• Plamen Stefanov, Executive Director, ENERGO-PRO Energy Services EAD
• Svetoslav Benchev, Chairman of the Board, Bulgarian Oil and Gas Association
• Svetoslav Ivanov, Chairman of the Bulgarian Association Natural Gas
• Eng. Stoyan Manolov, Manager of "M-Gas"
• Todor Matev, Head of Trade Network, Electrohold Sales EAD
• Francois Deberg, Regional Director of Veolia for Bulgaria and Greece

Participants of the Energy and Climate Winter School were exposed to various topics relating to energy and climate policies, regulations, markets, solutions, and numerous best practices from energy and utility companies. Thanks to the support from sponsoring companies, all students and PhD candidates in related fields had the opportunity to attend the school free of charge.