The Ministry of Transport and Communications has not postponed the construction of the railway line to the Republic of North Macedonia
The Ministry of Transport and Communications has been working for years to develop Corridor 8, which connects the Adriatic Sea with the Black Sea through Albania, the Republic of North Macedonia and Bulgaria. Out of a total of 1 220 km of railway track, more than half of its length, 747 km, is on the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria. Of these, only 2.5 km of railway line from Gyueshevo to Deve Bair (the border with the Republic of North Macedonia) remains to be built. The section is funded under the 2021-2027 Transport Connectivity Programme and will be completed by the planned deadline of 2029. By comparison, the missing section on the territory of the Republic of North Macedonia is approximately 70 km.
Media speculation is the claim that our country has postponed the modernization of the Bulgarian section. The Radomir-Gyueshevo railway line is operational and after the completion of a 2.5 km section from Gyueshevo to Deve Bair, it will be possible to connect to the network of the Republic of North Macedonia’s operator via a cross-border tunnel. Moreover, the National Railway Infrastructure Company has commissioned the design of the rehabilitation of the entire section for speeds up to 160 km. This project is also funded under the Transport Connectivity Programme 2021-2027.
On 15 January 2025, in accordance with the established procedure, Bulgaria submitted to the Republic of North Macedonia a draft agreement on a cross-border railway tunnel facility with them. In the Draft Agreement is stipulated that the parties have a common objective - the construction of a cross-border railway tunnel facility between the Republic of Bulgaria and the Republic of North Macedonia in the border area. This includes conducting of public works contracts and supervising the construction of the tunnel by one of the contracting parties and making efforts to provide grants for its construction, as the constructed facility should meet the EU and NATO requirements for this type of infrastructure. To date, no official response has been received from the Republic of North Macedonia.
Additional information:
At the initiative of Bulgaria, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed in 2021 between the Republic of Bulgaria, the Republic of Albania and the Republic of North Macedonia on cooperation in the construction of sustainable infrastructure along Corridor 8 as a basis for negotiations. The Memorandum of understanding is focused on investment projects with the highest benefit for the region and on coordination and implementation of efforts and measures to build the missing connections between countries, as well as projects on the territory of each of them.
Again at the suggestion of Bulgaria, a Joint Declaration of Bulgaria, Italy, Albania and the Republic of North Macedonia was adopted on 25 November 2022, confirming the common commitment and concrete measures to build the infrastructure along the Corridor within the deadlines provided for in the guidelines for the development of the Trans-European Transport Network.
Thanks to the efforts of the Bulgarian side, the route from Corridor 8: Sofia – Skopje – Durres – Bari (by sea) is already part of the new European Transport Corridor ‘Western Balkans – Eastern Mediterranean’, which is included in the new Regulation (EU) 2024/1679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June 2024 on Union guidelines for the development of the trans-European transport network.
The Declaration of the National Assembly of the Republic of Bulgaria of 26 September 2024 confirms the political intention and aspiration to complete the construction of Pan-European Corridor 8 on the Bulgarian side. It calls as well on the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia to approach responsibly and in good faith, all commitments and arrangements made in order to timely build the sections of the Corridor route on its territory.
Bulgaria is actively working to finalize the activities related to the modernization of the railway infrastructure along Corridor 8 on its territory, including the construction of a direct railway connection between the Republic of Bulgaria and the Republic of North Macedonia.
Projects under construction are along the directions Sofia-Plovdiv-Burgas and Karnobat-Sindel-Varna, with a total investment value of over BGN 3 billion.
The development of project solutions for the modernization of the railway section from Radomir to Gyueshevo and from Gyueshevo to the border with the Republic of North Macedonia is underway, and the construction of the second section together with a connection to the existing line is envisaged for funding under the Transport Connectivity Programme 2021-2027 (TCP 2021-2027). At present, conceptual designs of the newly designed sections have been approved, for which an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Decision has entered into force. The technical design is being completed and detailed development plans are about to be drawn up.
When selecting a contractor for the construction of the railway section by the end of 2026, the indicative deadline for completion of the construction activities on the section is in accordance with the eligibility period of expenditure under the TCP 2021-2027, and the Memorandum of Understanding between the Republic of Bulgaria, the Republic of Albania and the Republic of North Macedonia on cooperation in the construction of sustainable infrastructure along Corridor 8 as a basis for negotiations (approved by Decision No 720 of 15.10.2021 of the Council of Ministers, in force since 19 October 2021).