Bulgaria’s Regional Development Minister Assen Gagaouzov and Finance Minister Plamen Oresharski requested a 200 million leva from the state budget surplus for unforeseen expenditures to build highways and cover expenditures related to the land alienation procedures, Dnevnik daily reported on June 4.

The proposal has already been filed with the Prime Minister Sergei Stanishev's cabinet and Oresharski is expected to seal it upon his return from a trip abroad, Gagaouzov added.

About 60 million leva of the funds would be used for the construction of the southern arc of the Sofia ring road and another 100 million leva for Trakiya highway. A further 22 million leva would go for alienation procedures.

According to the minister, the outlays for Trakiya highway would be spent on salaries to developers performing works on the highway this year. The bulk of the construction works would be carried out between early 2009 and mid-2010.

As for the southern arc of Sofia ring road, Gagaouzov said that spending per km of the stretch would be twice as expensive because of the complexity of the region. According to the minister, the budget surplus would total 300 million leva.

Earlier on June 4, the minister attended the signing of 14 contracts under the support for municipal road network repair programme. The total value of the projects under the Regional Development operational programme totals 65 million leva. The projects are intended to rehabilitate about 180 km of roads within the next two years.