The contract for the delivery of new trains is a significant step in the development of the national railway and rail transport in general. This was stated by the Minister of Transport and Communications Krasimira Stoyanova after signing today a contract for the delivery of 20 electric multiple unit trains with the consortium "Škoda Transportation and Škoda Vagonka". Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev attended the ceremony in the Granite Hall of the Council of Ministers.
"Thank you to the team at the Ministry of Transport and Communications and to everyone who has been with us on this long, difficult journey. I wish my colleagues from Škoda the necessary perseverance to receive the rolling stock on time and according to the requirements of the contract. I hope that this will not be the last contract that will give significant development to the Bulgarian railway", Minister Stoyanova said.
Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev congratulated all those who worked for the implementation of the agreement. The Prime Minister recalled that new trains have not been bought for 20 years and pointed out that there is a possibility to buy 5 more trains with an annex. Prime Minister Glavchev also pointed out that the funds are provided by the Recovery and Sustainability Plan.
Škoda Chief Operating Officer Peter Novotny expressed confidence that the trains will be delivered on time and to the expected quality. Deputy Head of the Czech Embassy Jan Indrich said Bulgarians will appreciate the comfort, speed and design of the new trains.
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The value of the contract for the rolling stock is BGN 511.4 million and the delivery period for the trains is 2 years. The locomotives will serve passengers on the longest railway lines in the country – Sofia-Burgas, Sofia-Varna and Sofia-Ruse.
Included in the supply contract are maintenance for a period of 15 years and staff training. Rolling stock has a capacity of at least 300 seats and a speed of up to 160 km/h.
