Concessionaire Increases Investment and Turnover at Port Lesport The Concession Grant Agreement for the Lesport Port Terminal, which is part of the port of public transport of national importance Varna, signed on June 8, 2005, has been amended. The changes extend the term of the contract to the legally permitted term of the Concessions Act, as well as investment obligations and the basic annual turnover for the duration of the concession. Port Lesport JSC was established on March 15, 2005 by a decision of the Varna District Court. The main shareholder in the company, which holds 99% of the capital, is Chimimport JSC. In May 2005, a one-stage non-attended competition for the selection of a concessionaire at the Port Lesport, part of a port for public transport of national importance - Varna, was held. With a decision of the Council of Ministers, Port Lesport JSC was selected as a concessionaire at the port, part of a port for public transport of national importance - Varna. On June 8, 2005, a Port Concession Agreement was signed for a period of 30 years. The concession contract entered into force on 30 May 2006.
Source: Banker (13.01.2020)

D Bank is ready to lend BGN 22 million to Ahmed Dogan's TPP Varna The renovation of the TPP Varna controlled by Ahmed Dogan and Danail Papazov is secured with a new BGN 22 million loan resource from D Bank. The loan agreement is dated February 26, but it is only now visible from a pledge entered in the Commercial Register on the plant and its assets in favor of the bank, which is owned by Fuat Guven. The amount is probably for the ongoing renovation of the units of the TPP, which, after being acquired by the politicians from the MRF, earns, without being operational, from cold reserve contracts with the state Electricity System Operator. However, there is no official information on whether the loan has been used. TPP Varna itself was sold at the end of 2017 by CEZ to Sigda, a company owned by the family of former Transport Minister Oresharski's cabinet Danail Papazov. The deal was then financed with a EUR 24.225 mln loan from First Investment Bank. Months later in 2018, the honorary chairman of the MRF, Ahmed Dogan, bought a 70% stake in Sigda for about BGN 1.5 million, according to Papazov.
Source: Capital (27.05.2020)

Covid-19 reduced the revenues of the Port of Varna by 13% The Covid-19 pandemic reduced the revenues of Port of Varna SPJSC in the first half of the year by 13%. This was announced by the executive director of the company eng. Petar Seferov. From the beginning of the year to June 30, 2020, 3.38 million tons of cargo were handled in the port, 50.3% of which were bulk, 12.19% - general, 10.62% - liquid and 26.89% - containerized cargo. Compared to the first half of 2019, 388 thousand tons less cargo was handled in the Port of Varna, which is a decrease of 10.3%, with a significant decrease in the handling of bulk cargo (-17.8%), containers (-14%) and general cargo (-5.5%). "The reason for all this is the crisis caused by the spread of Covid-19, as a result of which our main customers, such as factories in the Devnya region, worked at reduced capacity. The decline in container turnover is global trend during the current crisis ", summarized eng. Seferov. The reduced volumes of processed cargoes are the main reason for the contraction of the port's revenues from the activity by 13% compared to the first half of 2019.
Source: economic.bg (28.07.2020)

The state's care for Port Dogan has not stopped The past year will be remembered for the constant care of the state for the construction of an attractive port infrastructure in Varna-Beloslav Lake, in the middle of which is the port of Ahmed Dogan. On Wednesday, December 22, the government authorized the implementation of hydraulic engineering activities to deepen the two routes (canals 1 and 2) on which vessels are moving. The activities will be carried out by the state company Transport Construction and Reconstruction SPJSC, and the working period is 510 days. This is another decision of the cabinet to modernize the water corridor. Earlier in the year, excavation activities with different deadlines were allowed three times, and there was another permit - to work on improving one of the quays of Varna-West and restoring the design parameters in front of the walls of the Lesport terminal. It is likely that different types of activities require separate government acts, which is why the ministers have dealt with the case several times. The project for the water corridor through the lake is worth a total of BGN 350 million. It will benefit all surrounding ports, including the state-owned Varna Port. The idea for the deepening is very old, but money was found only after Dogan appeared as the owner in the area at the end of 2018.
Source: Sega (23.12.2020)