All procedures for the tender for the railway connection between North Macedonia and Bulgaria, part of Corridor 8, have been stopped. After the statements of Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski, and yesterday of the Minister of Transport Aleksandar Nikoloski about attempts to bribe the companies participating in the tender, the procedure for selecting a contractor for the works has been terminated. Seven Turkish companies participated in the tender, which suggests that the bribery attempt was made by one of them, reports the Skopje-based electronic publication "MKD", quoted by Focus.
Following accusations of bribery and complications in the project, the Ministry of Transport and the Macedonian Railways - Infrastructure have withdrawn their teams to assess the railway project to Bulgaria. The government is not abandoning this project, but the plans will be reviewed, and a real solution will be sought together with the EU and Bulgaria.
This project is estimated at 560 million euros. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport Alexander Nikoloski revealed that no company from EU member states has applied for the tender.
"Seven companies applied, but none were from reputable EU member states. Some tried to bribe me and other employees. Due to these problems and the compromised project, we decided to withdraw the assessment teams. This action underlines our commitment to the integrity of the project,“ Nikoloski said.
The railway project faces significant challenges, including the construction of 22 tunnels and 56 bridges over just 23 kilometers. The estimated cost is around 20 million euros per kilometer. Currently, 23 kilometers of railway line from Kriva Palanka to the Bulgarian border remain to be built.
"Our goal is to develop a strong and viable project in cooperation with the EU, Bulgaria and the banks, with clear guarantees from Bulgaria about its ability to complete the project“, Nikoloski said yesterday, adding that Skopje is working dedicatedly for the implementation of the Corridor 8 roads.