08 Oct 2010 / 05:03
Construction of the second bridge over the Danube River between Bulgaria and Romania may face further delays, sparking fears in the two countries that EU funding could be lost.
Marian Chiriac and Boryana Dzhambazova
The announcement of a possible delay came after the Bulgarian Transport Minister Aleksander Tsvetkov and his Romanian counterpart Ana Boagiu on Wednesday visited the construction site of the bridge that is intended to link the Bulgarian town of Vidin with the Romanian town of Calafat.
Tsvetkov said that the Spanish company FCC, which is constructing the bridge, had asked for a six-month extension on the project, which the countries were not ready to grant.
Works have been delayed several times since the project was launched. According to the original schedule, construction was due to be completed at the end of this year.
Both ministers stressed this week that any future delays are unacceptable and the FCC should complete the project by the end of next year, as agreed in the most recent project plans.
Boagiu said Thursday that Romania is considering suing the company if there are further delays.
"Construction works on the Romanian side will be finished in June next year, but the entire bridge has to be ready at the same time. We will once again ask the Spanish company to comply with the last deadline, which is the end of 2011. If this does not happen, we will sue the company," said Boagiu.
Tsvetkov and Boagiu warned that any future slowdowns could cost both Balkan countries dearly, as they could lose EU funding provided for the project. The overall cost of the project is estimated at around EUR 226 million. Bulgaria and Romania previously negotiated with Brussels to secure an extension of the deadline after construction slowed.
Tsvetkov also warned that unexpected increases to the total cost were possible, but gave no details as to the exact amounts of any such increases.
Although the Danube forms much of the border between Bulgaria and Romania, at the moment there is only one bridge along the entire 470-kilometer river stretch that provides a road connection. This bridge is almost 60 years old and faces heavy traffic congestion - the two road and rail lanes are considered wholly inadequate for the increased volumes of traffic the bridge has seen in the years since it was built.
The new bridge will have two motorway lanes and a rail track running in each direction. It will form part of a major EU transport corridor, Corridor IV, connecting Dresden in Germany with
The announcement of a possible delay came after the Bulgarian Transport Minister Aleksander Tsvetkov and his Romanian counterpart Ana Boagiu on Wednesday visited the construction site of the bridge that is intended to link the Bulgarian town of Vidin with the Romanian town of Calafat.
Tsvetkov said that the Spanish company FCC, which is constructing the bridge, had asked for a six-month extension on the project, which the countries were not ready to grant.
Works have been delayed several times since the project was launched. According to the original schedule, construction was due to be completed at the end of this year.
Both ministers stressed this week that any future delays are unacceptable and the FCC should complete the project by the end of next year, as agreed in the most recent project plans.
Boagiu said Thursday that Romania is considering suing the company if there are further delays.
"Construction works on the Romanian side will be finished in June next year, but the entire bridge has to be ready at the same time. We will once again ask the Spanish company to comply with the last deadline, which is the end of 2011. If this does not happen, we will sue the company," said Boagiu.
Tsvetkov and Boagiu warned that any future slowdowns could cost both Balkan countries dearly, as they could lose EU funding provided for the project. The overall cost of the project is estimated at around EUR 226 million. Bulgaria and Romania previously negotiated with Brussels to secure an extension of the deadline after construction slowed.
Tsvetkov also warned that unexpected increases to the total cost were possible, but gave no details as to the exact amounts of any such increases.
Although the Danube forms much of the border between Bulgaria and Romania, at the moment there is only one bridge along the entire 470-kilometer river stretch that provides a road connection. This bridge is almost 60 years old and faces heavy traffic congestion - the two road and rail lanes are considered wholly inadequate for the increased volumes of traffic the bridge has seen in the years since it was built.
The new bridge will have two motorway lanes and a rail track running in each direction. It will form part of a major EU transport corridor, Corridor IV, connecting Dresden in Germany with
Thessaloniki in Greece and Istanbul in Turkey.
balkan insight
Δεν υπάρχουν σχόλια:
Δημοσίευση σχολίου