The European Investment Bank (EIB) would grant a 1 billion euro loan to cover deficits in the funding for operative programmes, Transport Minister Aleksandar Tsvetkov said.

An agreement for the credit had been reached, Bulgarian daily Dnevnik quoted Tsvetkov as saying.

Under the agreement, 20 per cent of the funding would come from the budget, with the remainder coming from the European Union Cohesion Fund.
A large chunk of the funding would to go to the operative programme Transport, which included the construction of 213 km highway and 69 km first class roads at a total cost of 990 million euro.
Analyses had shown that the national Railway Infrastructure company would not be able to afford upgrading of the lines Sofia - Plovdiv, Plovdiv - Bourgas and Sofia - Dragoman, as well as for the terminal at Podouene, Dnevnik said.

Deficits for renewal of the Sofia - Plovdiv line was currently 80 per cent, Dnevnik said, though the contract was expected to be signed by mid-2010.

Costs for the renewal of the line Sofia - Bourgas were estimated at 164 million euro, while the line Sofia - Dragoman would cost 111 million according to estimates. Both lines were expected to start construction in 2010.
For landtransfers, necessary to connect the Hemus highway to Sofia's ringroad, 23 million leva were needed, according to Vasilka Kostadinova, director Project Realisation under the operative programme Transport with the Road Infrastructure agency.
These funds could not come from the 2010 budget, which would lead to delays in the realisation of projects, Dnevnik daily quoted Kostadinova as saying.