site.btaRegional Development Minister: Construction of Byala - Veliko Tarnovo Motorway Section Will Be Transparent

The entire process of construction of the motorway section from Byala to Veliko Tarnovo will be absolutely transparent and anyone who wishes can give their expert assessment, assured Minister of Regional Development and Public Works Ivan Ivanov at the beginning of the Government meeting on Wednesday.

This is one of the most complex construction sections in this part of the country, on the Danubian Plain, where three tunnels with a total length of over 2 km will be built, several bridges with pillars over 30 meters high, a total length of viaducts of 9 km, construction of underpasses and overpasses, retaining and strengthening walls, deep excavations and high embankments is planned, since the Danubian Plain has mostly loess soils and complex terrain, the Minister explained. He added that several road junctions are planned to provide direct connections in the busiest directions, with the approximate length of the junction connections being over 10 km. This is a section filled with an extremely large number of facilities, the construction of which is extremely expensive, Ivanov pointed out.

The procedure that the Road Infrastructure Agency launched on Tuesday for the selection of a contractor was prepared by several teams back then. This is not the work of this Cabinet or in particular of this leadership of the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works , explained Minister Ivanov. He noted that it is clear to everyone that with the delay in time, prices increase. The first steps for the construction of this section date back to 2020, the Minister recalled. 

Commenting on Continue the Change’s Andrey Tsekov and Kiril Petkov’s allegations about a corruption scheme concerning a call for tenders for the construction of a 60-km section between Byala and Veliko Tarnovo, Ivanov said that he dies not understand since when Tsekov has been a fan of the lowest price criterion, as during the Denkov Cabinet “they were breaking ground on the other two sections, which are not at all at the lowest price, but are under the same conditions in which this lot is being built”. 

The Minister added that  a reference with colleagues in Romania for a recently launched tender determines a price per km of 55 million to 78 million excluding VAT. This means that this is not a practice only for Bulgaria, Ivanov stressed. “We showed true collegiality and continuity when we left this leadership of the RIA, appointed by the colleagues from Continuing the Change - Democratic Bulgaria. I do not understand who these criticisms are directed at, to themselves or to the Cabinet,” he pointed out and added that there will be no price increase.

Earlier in the day, Continuing the Change saw a corruption scheme in the public procurement announced on Tuesday by the Road Infrastructure Agency for the construction of a section of the highway between the towns of Byala and Veliko Tarnovo.