Skopje, 26 September 2024 (MIA) - Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport and Communications, Aleksandar Nikoloski, stated that the tender for the railway line to Bulgaria has been unsuccessful.

In an interview with MTV’s 360 Degrees interview, Nikoloski stated that he is not giving up on the idea of constructing a railway line to Bulgaria, but what is currently being proposed is unfeasible to implement. He added that he has no intention of reissuing the tender in its current form.

Nikolovski believes that the next step should be to sit down with Bulgaria and work together on the project.

“We need to sit down and discuss with Bulgaria. I would do it even tomorrow, but I assume they would want to finish the elections there and form a political government. Together we should create e a project, assess whether this route is the best option, find financing and see it there is a better alternative. I believe there is, and we should jointly develop the project, find financing and issue the tender together. That is the only approach that makes sense. If we approach this jointly as neighboring countries, since borders are just artificial constructs, I am confident it will be fully realized," Nikoloski emphasized.

When asked about part of the funds for the railway being a grant, and whether that money would be lost if the project is not realized, Nikolovski stated that the funds would be lost in any case.

“Six Turkish companies and one Greek company have applied for the tender, I’m revealing this for the first time. The Greek company’s bid is €250 million higher than the estimated value, which probably says a lot about the feasibility of the project. As for the other six, I can assure you they have no intention of building. They intend to take the advance payment and vanish. So, won’t the money be wasted that way as well?” Nikoloski pointed out in the interview.

Photo: MIA archive