Low Danube Levels Hinder Bulgaria-Romania Bridge Construction

The construction of the second Bulgarian-Romanian Danube bridge has been affected by the record low levels of the great European river.

The record low waters of the Danube, the lowest since 1941, have made it hard to access the last pillar of the bridge between Bulgaria's Vidin and Romania's Calafat, whose construction by the Spanish firm FCC is supposed to be completed sometime in 2012-2013, after monstrous delays and disputes with the states of Bulgaria and Romania.

Barge access to pillar PB12, which is located in Romania's section of the Danube, is impossible at the present moment, BTA reported Monday.

The construction of the railroad extension on the Romanian bank is also problematic. The construction works in the navigable part of the Danube are being carried out 24 hours daily, the report said.

The level of the Danube river near Bulgaria's Novo Selo is 2 cm below the ocean level, having dropped down by 3 cm in the past 24 hours.

The freight and commercial trade on the Danube has virtually stopped because of the low level of the river, Lyudmil Ivanov, head of the port control section of the Bulgarian Danube Port Lom, is quoted as saying.

Port Lom recently cut the working hours of its workers in half because of the low river levels.

Ivanov has pointed out that only vessels that have not been loaded can navigate the Danube. The Upper Danube regions are not seeing any fresh inflow of water, and it is unknown how long the navigation stagnation will continue.

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