Bulgaria's Black Sea Highway to Be Completed by 2017

Bulgaria's Regional Development Minister Rosen Plevneliev has promised a completed Black Sea highway by 2017. Photo by BGNES

One of Bulgaria’s major infrastructure projects – the highway running along the Black Sea coast – will be completed by 2017, promised Regional Development Minister Plevneliev.

“The city of Varna will be the second city in Bulgaria in addition to the capital Sofia, which will have more than one highway running to it,” Rosen Plevneliev stated during a visit to Varna on Thursday.

He vowed that despite the economic crisis the government will find money for the Black Sea Highway, and that by 2017 the Black Sea ports of Varna and Burgas should be connected by it.

The Bulgarian government has recently “rebranded” the Black Sea highway, which was originally an individual project, as “Lot 6”, i.e. an extension of the Trakiya Highway in order to increase its chances of getting EU funding.

The Trakiya Highway, expected to be completed by 2012, runs from Sofia to Burgas, and turning the Black Sea Highway into its extension from Burgas to Varna has been justified on the grounds that it would be establishing a connection between Sofia and Varna along the Pan-European Transport Corridor No. 8.

Bulgaria’s Regional Development Minister said that in 2010 the budget of his ministry is six times smaller than it was in 2008, and that the BGN 75 M set aside for road rehabilitation will be barely enough to cover the repairs of the major roads in the country.

Plevneliev complained that the team of his predecessor Asen Gagauzov had left behind debts of BGN 280 M, while the ministry currently has only BGN 10 M in its account.

“The situation in 2010 is dramatic thanks to the many public procurement contracts made by Mr. Gagauzov and his bright party BSP in a hasty fashion, and without any economic justification,” the Minister said.

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