October 4 (SeeNews) - Bulgaria's state-owned National Railway Infrastructure Company (NRIC) said that it has signed a 185 million levs ($103.8 million/94.6 million euro) contract with a tie-up comprising Bombardier Transportation Italy, Bombardier Transportation Polska, and Bulgarian companies GP Group and Marmet.
The deal envisages upgrade of the signaling system of 18 railway stations, integration of an European Train Control System (ETCS), a video surveillance system and a dispatch system, NRIC said in a statement on Thursday.
The contract also provides for the rehabilitation of the signalling facilities at 15 train stations, the telecommunications facilities at 31 stations, and the dispatcher rooms at 19 train stations.
The project benefits from EU funding under Operational Programme Transport and Transport Infrastructure 2014-2020. The works are part of a larger project for the rehabilitation of the railway line connecting Bulgaria's second largest city Plovdiv with the city of Burgas, on the Black Sea coast.
According to registry agency data, Bombardier Transportation Italy holds a 50% stake in the tie-up, while Bombardier Transportation Polska owns 1%. Bulgarian companies GP Group and Marmet hold stakes of 44% and 5%, respectively.
(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)