Only one company wanted to compete with BDZ in passenger rail transport. “Ivkoni Express” has submitted bids for two lots from the tender for awarding the new public service for passenger rail transport, in which private operators are allowed for the first time. The new contracts will enter into force on December 13, 2026, when the monopoly of “BDZ-Passenger Transport” expires.
The news was announced by the Deputy Prime Minister and Transport Minister Grozdan Karadjov, after the deadline for submitting offers expired last night. At 12:00 p.m., the bids were decrypted, with more details expected later.
The awarding of the contracts will be on a regional basis, and for this purpose the railway network was divided into three lots – western, northern and southern. Each of the lots also includes secondary lines, and will be served by a depot on its territory – Sofia for the western lot, Gorna Oryahovitsa for the northern and Plovdiv for the southern.
All express, international and night fast trains fall into the western lot with the Sofia depot, which means the most profitable lines from Sofia to Varna and from Sofia to Burgas. That is why it was expected that this lot would remain for execution by “BDZ-Passenger Transport”. The state carrier is the only bidder for this lot. For the other two lots, BDZ will be in competition with “Ivkoni Express” – the railway division of the company, which holds a large part of the bus passenger transportation in the country.
The southern lot includes fast trains between Plovdiv and Varna via Karnobat and via Gorna Oryahovitsa, as well as passenger lines in the area, but not, for example, Plovdiv-Burgas. The northern lot includes fast trains from Ruse to Varna and to Plovdiv via Gorna Oryahovitsa, as well as passenger lines in the area.
Stay tuned for details
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