Some BGN17 mln will be spent on the renovation and rehabilitation of port facilities in 2006, said Bulgarian Ports Authority executive director Peicho Manolov. The development program envisages dredging of the Bourgas port canal and repairs at the breakwater of the Varna and Balchik ports, on the Black Sea, and the wharf of the Lom port, on the Danube.
Source: Dnevnik (12.01.2006)

Varna Port reported a net profit of BGN 2 mln for 2005, or 35% premium y/y, the company’s CEO, Mr. Daniel Papazov announced. The revenues are some BGN 40 mln, which is between 18% and 20% more, as compared to 2004. Till the end of the year, the served cargos at the port shall reach 8,5 mln t or 14,6% more versus last year. A serious growth in 2005 reported the transit cargos. In 2005, the company served 400 000 t of goods purposed for third countries, while in 2003, no transit cargos were made.
Source: Pari (28.01.2006)

The companies in the Port Varna-West industrial cluster have earmarked a total of BGN 970 mln for investment spending over the next 4 years, it emerged after corporate executives met with prime minister Sergei Stanishev in Devnya. The companies in the cluster reiterated their interest in the award of a concession contract for the multi-purpose terminal of Varna-West, part of Bulgaria's Varna Black Sea port. The cluster was established in July 2005 by the biggest cargo port users: soda ash maker Solvay-Sodi JSC, cement mill Devnya Cement, copper smelter Cumerio and mining and processing company Kaolin. Fertiliser maker Agropolychim is expected to join the cluster within weeks. The main goal of the cluster is to compete for the Varna-West concession. The members of the cluster currently generate 85% of the cargo traffic passing via the Varna port. The Varna-West port has 3 terminals: for hazardous and containerised cargo and one multi-purpose section. The concession procedure for the multi-purpose terminal is expected to be launched shortly.
Source: Dnevnik (20.02.2006)

The port of Bulgaria's Varna-based Marine Antipollution Enterprise, which is part of the Prista Oil group, already offers facilities for complex cargo handling. This concerns hatch covers manufactured by the local shipyard. The port is one of the few places in Varna that allow special cargo processing, company CEO Anton Manolov said. The port is specialised in handling various types of cargo, including containers, and has capacity for 250,000 tonnes of loads a month.
Source: Pari (27.03.2006)

Bulgaria's transport ministry will fast-track the concession procedure for Black Sea port Rosenets, the port terminal of the Varna thermal power plant and the Petrol Varna terminal. said Port Authority Executive Agency director Peicho Manolov. Bulgaria's Privatisation Agency signed last week a sale contract for the Varna TPP with Czech utility company CEZ. The buyer is ready to pay for the use of the terminal and has so far not shown interest in the concession procedure. The concession procedures for the 3 terminals of the Varna-West port will likely be organised on a competitive basis, said Manolov. The Varna-West port will have terminals for hazardous and containerised cargo as well as one multifunctional terminal. The procedure for a greenfield investment in the hazardous cargo terminal launched last year failed to attract candidates. Ammonia ash maker Solvay Sodi, cement mill Devnya Tsiment, smelter Cumerio Med and mining company Kaolin recently formed a cluster for the purposes of the Varna-West concession procedure. The members of the cluster operate quay berths at the port and generate 70% of its cargo traffic. They have pledged to invest 970 mln levs in the facility over the next 5 years.
Source: Dnevnik (28.04.2006)

The consortium of France's Sofrelog and Greece's Marac Electronics will install 7 radars along the Bulgarian Black Sea coast by Sept '07. The contract is part of the second phase of the deployment of the border-to-border vessel traffic management and information system. Two of the radars will be installed in Burgas while the rest will be positioned in the Varna coastal area.
Source: Dnevnik (19.07.2006)

The Port of Varna will leave behind its biggest competitor the Romanian port of Constanta and will rank next to the second biggest port in Europe - the Port of Hamburg. This conclusion was reached by the participants in the public discussion about the future of the port organized by the Standart Daily. The reconstruction of the Bulgarian port will start as yearly as next year, reads the national program for the development of Bulgarian ports for the period 2006-2015, prepared by Bulgaria's Ministry of Transport. The Port of Varna will start servicing 250 thousand tourists per year in the not too distant future.
Source: Standart (15.08.2006)

Port Varna changes its location Port Varna has to be moved to the protected area Kazashko. This was decided at the Varna Municipality at a discussion about city’s development plan. Varna district director Mr. Petar Kandilarov set a one-week period to the municipality authorities to provide their vision about this plan. Another possibility is Port Varna to be moved to the Port Lesport area. Though experts believe that this is not a good solution because a lot of funds should be invested in order to deepen the canal there and for the nationalizing of private properties at the site. Minister Petar Mutafchiev also agreed with the idea within the next 2 years the Port to be moved. Anyway rumors say that this is not such an important topic but now it is introduced as an important one in order to turn away the attention over the contestation at the Constitutional Court of the state-owned Ports National Company.
Source: Pari (27.11.2006)

The tract of land that will be vacated after the relocation of the Varna-East port, on the Black Sea, will be developed into a yacht dock and a passenger terminal, said port executive director Danail Papazov. At present, the port of Varna is divided into Varna East and Varna West. The idea is to move Varna East from its current location in the Bay of Varna, just 1 km away from the center of the city, further inland to the banks of the Varna and Beloslav lakes which are connected to the sea by two canals. Varna West is located 30 km west of the city, on the western banks of lake Beloslav. The construction of the yacht marina, passenger terminal and adjacent entertainment and leisure venues will be implemented under a concession arrangement. The relocation of Varna East will cost EUR 400 mln. The price tag includes the EUR 100 mln cost of new grain and containerised cargo terminals which will be operated under a concession arrangement. The concession procedure is likely to begin in mid-2007 after the masterplan for the development of the ports is ready.
Source: Dnevnik (06.12.2006)

The setting up of a new container terminal in Varna will cost some EUR 40 million. Representatives of the local government, MPs and experts discussed the options for the replacement of the existing port. If the port is not relocated by the end of 2006, the cargo transit may shift completely to the Romania's Constanta port, experts say. The Varna port currently incurs huge losses due to the lack of a container terminal. The new port may be located either in the vicinity of the old railway station or on the north bank of the Varna lake.
Source: Pari (06.12.2006)

Development plan for Port Varna will be approved until March 2007 A balanced plan how Port Varna East should be transferred to another site without abusing European ecological programmes must be figured out. After a discussion with the Minister of Environment and Waters – Dzhevdzhet Chakarov, the Minister of Transport is sure that such decision will be made soon. Mr. Mutafchiev believes that within the first quarter of 2007the major plan for Port Varna will be ready. When this is all set a concession procedure for the Port will be organized.
Source: Darik Radio (07.12.2006)

5 contenders for Port Varna Five companies – Sodi Devnya, Cumerio Med, Agropolihim and Devnya Cement take part in the concession procedure of Port Varna – West, but the Government is still delaying its final decision. Companies that perform 8-9% of the total Bulgarian export do 90% of their business through Port Varna – West and they are ready to invest in the facility that operates freights valued EUR 300 mln. per annum. The investment decision of all companies which take part in the Industrial cluster, formed for the concession of the port, depends much on the clarifying of all questions concerning the future concession. The investors rely on Prince Philip’s lobism in favor of the Industrial cluster.
Source: Monitor (13.12.2006)

Almost BGN 13 mln to be invested in Port Varna Almost BGN 13 mln are planned to be invested over the next year for renovation and improvements at Port Varna facilities, said the executive director Mr. Danail Papazov. At mid-2007 at Port Varna-West’s first ship space a new terminal phosphorus will be build. The Port is planning to invest almost BGN 5 mln in it and it is expected that it will be raedy for use at the end of 2008. Another BGN 800 000 will be invested in a dust cleaner at the soda terminal. Those two projects are expected to improve the environmental protection at the area, said Papazov. Another BGN 5 mln will be invested for the purchase of two new mobile lading cranes with a maximum load power of 140 tons. For the realization of the whole investment plan the company will have to take a bank loan or sign leasing contracts.
Source: Darik Radio (22.12.2006)

Varna port to spend 13 mln levs on investment in '07 Bulgaria's port of Varna, on the Black Sea, has earmarked 13 mln levs for investment spending in 2007, said harbour executive director Danail Papazov. The biggest purchase of equipment will be a 5.5 mln lev mobile crane. The new 140 ton crane capacity will be added to the 104. 3 ton Demag crane that is in operation, almost halving the layover time for containerised cargo. The new crane will handle exclusively British Petroleum transit shipments. The oil company is using the port of Varna as a distribution center for projects in the Caspian Sea. The port is expected to reach a containerised cargo traffic of 93,000 TEU by the end of 2006 and should cross the 100,000 TEU mark next year, rising to the ranks of major regional containerised cargo hubs like Constanta in Romania and Odessa in the Ukraine. The list of investment projects includes also the construction of a new phosphorite silo. The project should be implemented in 12 to 18 months at a cost of 5 mln levs. The port also intends to spend 0.8 mln levs on a deduster for cargo containing bulk soda. The port should finish 2006 with a net profit of 2.12 mln levs, said Papazov. Overall cargo traffic is seen down 0.4 mln tons year-on-year to 8 mln tons. The decline is attributed to the rerouting of copper concentrate shipments for local smelter Cumerio Med via the Burgas port further south.
Source: Dnevnik (27.12.2006)

The fishing port of Bourgas will no longer service ships sailing under Libyan flag. The measure is adopted to show disagreement with the death sentences of five Bulgarian medical nurses and a Palestinian doctor in the African country. The decision will remain effective until the medics receive a just sentence, the initiators explained. The port's refusal to service Libyan ships is not directed against the ordinary citizens of the African country. The manager of Bourgas's fishing port, Stoyan Momchev, called on other Bulgarian ports to join the initiative.
Source: Pari (28.12.2006)