On January 30, 2026, the management of "Stolichne Autotransport" EAD signed a contract that seriously doubts the way in which Sofia residents' money is spent. Under the pretext of "renewal" of the rolling stock, the company is preparing to deliver 18-year-old buses in a deplorable condition, the price of which in the official contract is nearly eight times higher than their real market value, 2,369,837.87 euros. This was stated by the municipal councilor from "Yes, Bulgaria" Simeon Stavrev in the studio of ”Darik Radio”.
“Everything in this deal is absurd - why do we have to bring in 18-year-old buses and how can the management of Stolichne Autotranslatov afford to spend such a sum of money from public finances in this way?”
When checking German vehicle sales sites, Stavrev discovered public advertisements for the same buses, identified by the numbers on their frames from the bid of the winning company in the public procurement, where the buses are offered at prices eight times lower than those set in the public procurement.
The photos from the advertisements also clearly show the critical condition of the equipment: outdated design, torn leather seats and heavily depreciated driver's dashboards. Also, the technical condition of the buses has been questioned due to the mileage data of over 700,000 kilometers, which would require new public procurement for servicing, turning the deal into a “bottomless pit“ for the municipal budget.
This case is yet another proof of the non-transparent management of municipal companies. Stavrev recalled that the current director of “Stolichne Autotranspozition“ was appointed without competition within the framework of the scandalous vote in the summer of 2024 by the so-called “economic majority“ in the SOS (GERB, BSP, ITN, the breakaway parties from “Vazrazhdane“ and Carlos Contrera), which installed temporary managements of the four leading transport companies. Although with the status of “temporary“, these individuals have been managing millions without real control for more than a year and a half.
The suspicions of corruption schemes are also strengthened by the profile of the participants in the public procurement. Mr. Mustafa Mustafa, whose name is associated with the company that won the delivery of the controversial vertical air conditioners for “Stolich Elektrotransport“ at inflated prices, is also the owner of the company EMERGENCY MOBILE SYSTEMS EOOD, which will deliver the new old buses.
The municipal councilor added:
“The outgoing government, the Peevski government, cannot find money under any operational program to provide financing for rolling stock in Sofia, and is delaying payments for key sites such as “Stamboliyski“ Blvd. Against this background, it remains unclear whether the economic majority in the Sofia Municipality will vote for a loan to pay for the purchase of buses from the concluded public procurement contract,” concluded Stavrev.