Bulgaria Launches €10.65M Intermodal Terminal Grant Call

SOFIA, Bulgaria – The Bulgarian Ministry of Transport and Communications has launched the second competitive funding procedure for intermodal operators, making €10,652,770 in non-repayable grants available under the Transport Connectivity 2021–2027 programme. The call targets modernisation and expansion of existing rail, river, maritime, logistics and freight forwarding terminals in five less-developed regions. The ministry has not disclosed the application deadline or the number of projects to be funded.

How Is the Funding Structured?

The Bulgarian Ministry of Transport and Communications is offering €10,652,770 in non-repayable European Regional Development Fund grants through the Transport Connectivity 2021–2027 programme, with per-project support ranging from €766,937 to more than €2 million. Eligible applicants are operators of rail, river, maritime, logistics and freight forwarding terminals in the North-West, North-Central, North-East, South-East and South-Central regions. Funds may be used for intermodal-specific equipment, specialised IT solutions, construction or refurbishment of rail and road infrastructure, and freight handling platforms. Applications must be submitted electronically via the E-application module in the ISUN information system.

Key Funding Data

How Does This Compare to Similar Funding Programs?

Germany’s 2026 rail investment package of €18.7 billion, up from €9.2 billion, is more than 1,700 times larger than Bulgaria’s €10.65 million intermodal terminal call (Source: Reuters, 2025). Germany’s infrastructure fund also earmarked €2.5 billion in 2026 for motorway bridge renovation, placing Bulgaria’s terminal grant in the context of much larger national infrastructure packages (Source: Reuters, 2025). Meanwhile, China-EU rail freight volumes fell again in 2025; Germany-China traffic decreased 25% to 25,418 TEUs, yet Bulgaria’s Central Corridor recorded a 14% increase despite an 18% decline in China-Europe rail traffic overall (Source: Upply, 2025). Renfe closed 2025 with net profit above €50 million, its first positive result since 2019, but freight remained loss-making (Source: Railmarket, 2025), underlining why public support for intermodal freight infrastructure remains necessary. The total budget of Bulgaria’s first intermodal funding procedure was not disclosed in the ministry’s announcement, making year-on-year growth for this second call impossible to calculate.

Editor’s Analysis

Bulgaria’s €10.65 million terminal-modernisation call is a small but strategically targeted intervention in one of the few growing Eurasian freight corridors: the Central Corridor rose 14% in 2025 while total China-EU rail freight fell 18% (Source: Upply, 2025). Germany’s €18.7 billion 2026 rail investment (Source: Reuters, 2025) shows the gap between core and cohesion-country infrastructure finance. EU recovery funding is simultaneously extending ERTMS to 707 km by Q2 2026 and modernising the Sofia-Plovdiv corridor (Source: Xpert.digital, 2025), so terminal upgrades are only one part of Bulgaria’s corridor development.

FAQ

Q: How much funding can each Bulgarian intermodal project receive under this call?
A: Each project can receive between €766,937 and more than €2 million from the €10,652,770 total non-repayable grant budget.

Q: Which Bulgarian regions and terminal types are eligible?
A: Operators of rail, river, maritime, logistics and freight forwarding terminals in the North-West, North-Central, North-East, South-East and South-Central regions may apply.

Q: What is the application deadline for this intermodal funding call?
A: The Ministry of Transport and Communications has not disclosed a deadline; applications must be submitted electronically via the E-application module in ISUN.