Varna municipality has earmarked 17.5ha for a new container terminal, weekly Stroitelstvo Gradut reported on April 7.

The land lot, located on the northern coast of Varna lake, will be handed over once the Government and the municipality sign a memorandum for the re-development of the entire area. It includes the re-location of Varna port to the western side of the lake, as well as the construction of a recreational zone on the current grounds of the port.

The Cabinet is set to review the memorandum in mid-April, Bulgarian Transport Minister Petar Moutafchiev said, quoted by the weekly. He added that he discussed the project last week with Varna mayor Kiril Yordanov and the chair of Varna municipal council Borislav Goutsanov.

Total costs are estimated at 500 million euro and the terminal would be completed in 2014, the daily said. Part of the costs will be covered by a loan from the Japan Bank for International Co-operation, which agreed to extend 226 million euro to finance the construction of container terminals in Varna and Bourgas.

Parliament has to ratify the loan by June 30, after which the Cabinet can launch the tenders to pick an adviser and a concessionaire, which have to be chosen by November 2008, the daily quoted Moutafchiev as saying. Construction work is scheduled to start in August 2010, by which time the main contractor that will build the terminal has to be picked, Moutafchiev added.