In July, repairs began on the Bulgarian section of the bridge near Ruse
Bulgaria and Romania are launching simultaneous feasibility studies at five locations on both sides of the Danube to build new bridges. This was announced by the press center of the Ministry of Transport and Communications.
For the Romanian side, dredging the Danube is a priority. The Bulgarian side will respond adequately to this, as from June 20 the Executive Agency “Research and Maintenance of the Danube” (EAPPD) begins dredging the river with its own funds, and within a week we will announce a public tender for dredging activities, said the Minister. Nikolay Sabev during a meeting today in Bucharest of the joint Bulgarian-Romanian working group on connectivity, which is under the patronage of the two prime ministers.
On the Romanian side, the working group is led by Sorin Grindianu, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport and Infrastructure. The Bulgarian delegation was accompanied by the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Bulgaria to Bucharest HE Radko Vlaykov.
Minister Sabev stated that funding has been provided for the deepening of the Danube in the amount of BGN 15 million.
“The documentation has been prepared and has already been sent to the Public Procurement Agency for preliminary control, and the funds have been distributed for a three-year period,” he explained.
Regarding the joint project Fast Danube Sabev and Grindianu agreed by the end of 2022 a joint working group to prepare a joint project for funding by the European Commission of the planned engineering measures on the river.
Sabev informed his Romanian counterpart that Bulgaria is fully prepared for the launch of the Ruse-Giurgiu ferry connection and suggested that a joint border control be carried out in Ruse, while the necessary conditions are being created in Giurgiu. Deputy Prime Minister Grindianu has pledged to help local authorities speed up action in Giurgiu.
The Bulgarian side plans to start repairing its part of the Danube Bridge I in July, which from the point of view of the Romanian delegation could create serious problems for tourist and trade flows, the ministry said in a statement. Sabev will discuss the issue with Deputy Prime Minister Grozdan Karadzhov so that the time for repairs can be planned so that traffic between the two countries is hindered to a minimum, the ministry said.
