Bulgaria's State Railways Liabilities Down by BGN 100M – Min

Bulgarian State Railways company financial liabilities have been reduced by more than BGN 100M, Transport Minister Danail Papazov said, Tuesday.

At the end of 2013, the company's debt amounted to BGN 624M, and currently it is about BGN 605M, Papazov claimed and assured that another BGN 50M will be paid off by the end of 2014, according to Bulgarian media reports.

The majority of creditors accept the plan offered by the Bulgarian government. Negotiations are held with potential manufacturers regarding repair works and equipment maintenance, Papazov said.

Minister Papazov has launched the renovated section of the railway station Mihaylovo under an OP Transport project for the rehabilitation of the track between the cities of Plovdiv and Burgas. The cost of the track is over BGN 35M and it will allow a speed of 160 km per hour.

Deputy Transport Minister Anton Ginev has cautioned on Monday that the Bulgarian State Railways (BDZ) company faces bankruptcy unless its accounts are unblocked.

In early February 2014, German financial institution FMS Wertmanagement froze the bank accounts of BDZ over overdue debts of EUR 11 M.

One year earlier, the assets of the cargo unit of BDZ, BDZ Freight Services, were frozen due to unpaid debts to Depfa bank.

Ginev made clear Monday that Germany insisted on solving the problem with the outstanding debts of the Bulgarian state-owned railway company on a governmental level, adding that a solution was unlikely to be reached soon.

Bulgaria's Deputy Transport Minister did not specify a deadline for the end of the talks but he assured that BDZ had the necessary sum of over BGN 10 M to pay the loan installment due in May.

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