The government approved additional expenses in the budget of the Ministry of Transport and Communications in the amount of 25 million euros, and the funds will be provided to the National Railway Infrastructure Company (NRIC) for the settlement of already completed activities on strategic railway projects, financed by the European Union and the national budget, the government press center announced.
The announcement states that the decision is in accordance with the Methodology for changing the price of a public procurement contract as a result of inflation, adopted by Decree No. 290 of the Council of Ministers from 2022. As the manager of the railway infrastructure and beneficiary of projects with funds from the EU and the national budget worth over 2 billion euros, NRIC does not have the opportunity to cover these costs with its own funds.
The government adds that providing the additional resource will allow timely payment to the contractors and will prevent the risk of delays or complete stoppage of construction activities on key railway lines, as the financing will guarantee the full and effective absorption of funds from European programs, and delaying them would lead to financial corrections, loss of European funding and a greater burden on the state budget in the future.
BTA recalls that today the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport and Communications in resignation Grozdan Karadjov signed 12-year contracts for passenger railway transport and stated that a second operator will enter the market for the first time.