13.11.2025

On November 13, 2025, M- Gaz and Azerbaijan’s State Oil and Gas Company SOCAR officially announced the next phase of their long-term initiative to gasify public, social, and religious sites. The new sites included in the hybrid gasification project are the Holy Trinity Church and the Mosque in the town of Dve Mogili, Ruse Province.

The choice of the two religious sites – the Christian church and the Muslim house of prayer – is motivated by the partners’ desire to emphasize and support multicultural dialogue and tolerance in the region by providing modern and environmentally friendly natural gas heating for all communities. In Dve Mogili, people of different faiths have been living together in harmony for centuries, celebrating holidays and religious and secular rituals together. Currently, neither of the two sites is heated during the cold winter days.

The Holy Trinity Church, built in 1873, is one of the symbols of the Bulgarian Revival. It has preserved not only the spirit of the era, but also the burial place of the great voivode and national liberation movement activist Philip Totyu, who died in the city on March 22, 1907, and was buried in the churchyard. The temple, whose priest is Father Dragomir, also possesses a rare copy of the miraculous icon of the Vladimirska Holy Mother of God, unique in that the Infant is painted with bare feet.

Father Dragomir said, “Warmth is a symbol of care and prosperity. We are delighted that this project not only provides environmentally friendly heating, but also shows respect for our spiritual heritage and our community.”

The partners will also modernize the Mosque, which is a permanently functioning Muslim temple belonging to the Regional Mufti’s Office in Ruse, headed by Regional Mufti Yuzel Hayredin Hyusnyu. The building is more than 200 years old and used to serve as a school. In the 1990s, a minaret was added, and the interior was restored in 2020.

“This is a strong sign of tolerance and understanding. When two large companies support temples of different faiths at the same time, they send a message that together we can build a better, cleaner, and more united community,” said Hyusnyu.

Eng. Stoyan Manolov, owner and manager of M-Gaz, added: “The gasification of the temples in Dve Mogili is not just an investment in infrastructure. The inclusion of these key sites of spiritual heritage in the municipality in the hybrid gasification project is an investment in people’s health and the sustainable future of the region.”

The project in Dve Mogili is the next phase of a long-term initiative by SOCAR and M-Gaz aimed at improving the energy efficiency of public buildings in the region. This cooperation began in November 2024 with the gasification of the St. St. Cyril and Methodius Primary School in the village of Nikolovo. The successful expansion continued in October 2025 with the Prolet Kindergarten in the village of Chervena Voda, where the old heating system from 1977 was completely replaced. M-Gaz’ total investment in the upgrade of the two educational institutions amounted to over BGN 166,000.

This transition to natural gas has already led to a 30% reduction in harmful emissions, achieved 50% lower heating costs, and contributed to a significant improvement in air quality and comfort in the buildings. As an additional gesture, M-Gaz is covering the kindergarten’s heating costs for the entire 2025/2026 season.

M-Gas will continue to provide both financing and expertise for the implementation of these projects. The ultimate goal of the partners is that by 2032, all public buildings in the municipality of Ruse will improve their energy efficiency by replacing solid fuels for heating with the more environmentally friendly natural gas.