South Stream Bulgaria announced the results of the bidding procedure for detailed engineering, material and equipment supply, construction and assembly operations, personnel training and South Stream gas trunkline commissioning in the Republic of Bulgaria.

Stroytransgaz consortium comprised of Russian Stroytransgaz and Bulgarian Gasproekt Jug won the bid.

11 participants competed in the advertised bidding, which started in December 2013. Taking part in the procedure were companies from Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Russia and Sweden.

The bidding procedure consisted of two stages. During the first stage the candidates were selected based on the compliance of submitted bidding documents with the announced bidding terms. During the second stage the tender board evaluated the candidates' technical and financial formal offers. The winner of the bid was chosen on the basis of formal offer evaluation.

About Stroytransgaz

Stroytransgaz is a Russian constructing company implementing full-cycle infrastructure projects in the gas and oil sector. Its core businesses are engineering, procurement, construction, retrofitting and technical support of oil and gas facilities.

Gasproekt Jug is a Bulgarian constructing company engaged in engineering, procurement and building & installation operations. The company includes Industrial Construction Holding, Technoexportstroy, Glavbolgarstroy, Ponsstroyengineering, PST Holding.

The Bulgarian section, the most capital intensive and technically challenging one, is the first onshore segment of the South Stream gas pipeline. The main pipeline route will run from the Black Sea coast to the Serbian border as well as a 59-kilometer branch to the gas distribution hub in Provadia (gas is fed into the existing Bulgarian gas pipeline network to be conveyed to Bulgarian, Turkish, Greek and Macedonian consumers). The main gas route of the Bulgarian section is 641 kilometers long; the length of the looping system will total 362 kilometers. Provision is made for the construction of a receiving terminal and three compressor stations (aggregate capacity of 300 MW) near Varna, Lozen and Rasovo.

About South Stream

South Stream is Gazprom's global infrastructure project aimed at constructing a gas pipeline with a capacity of 63 billion cubic meters across the Black Sea to Southern and Central Europe for the purpose of diversifying the natural gas export routes and eliminating transit risks. The first gas will be supplied via South Stream in late 2015. The gas pipeline will reach its full capacity in 2018.

In December 2012 the South Stream gas pipeline construction started near Anapa in the Krasnodar Territory. On October 31, 2013 a ceremony of welding the first joint at the Bulgarian section of South Stream took place. On November 24, 2013 the South Stream construction started in Serbia.

Gazprom and Bulgarian Energy Holding set up on a par the South Stream Bulgaria joint project company to implement the South Stream project in Bulgaria.

In 2011 the Bulgarian Council of Ministers granted the national significance status to the South Stream project within the Republic.

In November 2012 Gazprom and Bulgarian Energy Holding adopted the Final Investment Decision on the South Stream gas pipeline construction in the Republic of Bulgaria.

In November 2012 Gazprom and Bulgargaz signed a new long-term contract for Russian natural gas supply to Bulgaria. The document envisages annual gas supplies through 2022 in the amount of up to 2.9 billion cubic meters via the traditional gas transmission corridor, and once the South Stream gas pipeline is commissioned – via this new gas supply route.

About Bulgargaz

Bulgargaz is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bulgarian Energy Holding.