Despite the ongoing crisis, the commercial fleet of Bulgaria plans on expanding by several ships. Experts of Navigation Maritime Bulgare (Navibulgar) JSC are already inspecting the vessels in Greece and other producer-countries. The market is very attractive now, prices have fallen up to 50% from last summer, Kiril Domuschiev, chairman of the board of directors of KG Maritime Shipping JSC, explained the move. The company acquired 70% of the fleet, which currently has 60 ships. However, only 40-45 are in good shape.
Source: Standart (28.01.2009)

K G Maritime Shipping became a private company in August 2008 and since then we have undertaken lots of measures to strengthen its position, Kiril Domuschiev, president of the company explained for Pari daily. We reduced the running costs more than twice, got rid of all inefficient vessels older than 25 years and planned to buy new ships. Now is the to buy as prices are by 50% lower compared to last summer.
Source: Pari (19.02.2009)

719 people of Navigation Maritime Bulgare’s ships crew will be laid off, company’s Executive Director Hristo Donev said. The reasons for the redundancies are global financial and economic crises in the sailing sector, new structure in Navigation Maritime Bulgare, state’s failure to decommission ships that have been sailing for more than 25 years, and others. “The social commitment made by the new owner obliges us to suggest an alternative for the personnel laid off,” he said. He added the redundant workers will have an opportunity to get a job abroad on ships sailing under foreign flags.
Source: Novinar (12.03.2009)

Cargo carriers in a fight for survival This tendency will soon be supported by legislative changes. As Pari daily has already informed, European directive will be introduced whose main goal is to help railway and water transport and to transfer more freight to these two types of transportation. Unified tariffs for the automobile, railway and water transport are expected. At present, the guidelines are obligatory only for the ten countries that joined the union before Bulgaria did but if they are officially accepted then the requirements will be for all member states. Kiril Domuschiev, president of the Board of directors of Navigation Maritime Bulgare, expressed the opinion of the new owners of the company who support the EU position, as it will help them attract more cargo and become more stable in the region. The automobile branch is strongly against the suggested changes, as they will lead to the introduction of a new so-called eurovignette, Miroliub Stolarski, chairman of Bulgarian Association of Automobile Transport Companies (BAATC), said. Infrastructure in Bulgaria is one of the worst developed but automobile carriers will have to pay one of the highest road taxes for using European highways.
Source: Pari (20.03.2009)

Navigation Maritime Bulgare (NMB) is preparing to buy between 5 and 10 new ships, said the executive director of the company Hristo Donev. The vessel will be 20 000 and 32 000 tons. Donev According to Donev the ships will be second-hand, up to 10 years. The transactions will be financed by bank credit, as the company will invest as well its own funds. NMB decommissioned 12 vessels, five of which will be sold for scrap, because they are 40-42 years old.
Source: Monitor (09.04.2009)

The company is registered in Territorial administration Big taxpayers and insurers towards 2009, 04.30
Source: Tax Administration (30.04.2009)

Consolidated sales incomes of Bulgartabac Holding for 2008 dropped by 20% to BGN 307.3 million, the auditing report to the Bulgarian Stock Exchange shows. Earnings from realised production, which are the most important part of the incomes, dropped even more (by 23%) to BGN 255 million. Annual consolidated auditing turnover of the company dipped by 6.80% to BGN 366.4 million. Expenses were also up by 13% to BGN 336.9 million. Nevertheless, Bulgartabac posted consolidated annual profit for 2008 amounting to BGN 27.5 million, which is a rise by 685.7% year on year.
Source: Pari (25.05.2009)

The Bulgarian government is seriously concerned by the constant violation of a tri-party agreement for a ferry line between Bulgaria, the Ukraine, and Georgia. This was declared by the outgoing Minister of Transport, Petar Mutafchiev, who explained that the Ukrainian transport companies would constantly break the existing arrangements for the ferry line Varna (Bulgaria) - Ilichovsk (Ukraine) - Poti/Batumi (Georgia). The Ukrainian rail and ship companies involved wanted to change the three-way agreement for the ferry line into a series of bilateral agreements. "We believe that the Ukrainian side must not succumb to the pressure and to the attempt to destroy the balance between the transport companies", Mutafchiev said as quoted by the BTA. He noted that the ferry line must be serviced by companies from all three countries, taking turns. At the moment, the agreement is being violated because of the corporate interests of the Ukrainian firms, and no Bulgarian ships has been loading goods in an Ukrainian port in one month, the Minister explained. Mutafchiev believes that the violation of the agreement created tension between Bulgaria and the Ukraine that could worsen the bilateral relations. Bulgaria is insisting that the Ukraine government take measures to enforce the trilateral ferry agreement. Bulgaria's Prime Minister, Sergey Stanishev, who was born in the Ukrainian city of Kherson back in 1966, has also been involved in the talks with the Ukraine in an attempt to resolve the issue.
Source: Standart (03.07.2009)

German-Bulgarian consortium KG Maritime Shipping has requested a referral to its investment privatisation obligations for the Bulgarian national maritime fleet operator NMB , the post-privatisation control agency said. The investor cites the economic turmoil and the deteriorating business environment in the sector. NMB executive director Hristo Donev declined to comment on the request. The tie-in has pledged to plunk around BGN 780 million in the company over the next ten years. The initial plan called for pumping it all into new vessels to overhaul the company's fleet in a bid to lower the average age to less than 20 years. Almost half of the ship were aged over 30 by April.
Source: Dnevnik (10.08.2009)

German-Bulgarian consortium KG Maritime Shipping JSC has asked to postpone by three years the promised investments in the purchased by it Navigation Maritime Bulgare (NMB), said Emil Bozukov, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Post-Privatization Control Agency. The contract between the state and KG for 70% of the shares of NMB provides investment amounting to BGN 779.88 million for 10 years, as in the first five years the investments are BGN 372 million. The new owner of the NMB is committed to buy 25 new vessels at the conclusion of the transaction. The company even said that it had started negotiations with shipyards in Bulgaria, Japan and South Korea for the purchase of 21-25, 35-40 and even 200 thousand ton ships.
Source: mediapool.bg (20.08.2009)

On 1 October 2009 the shipbuilding contract for ship with Hull N 459 between Bulyard Shipbuilding Industry EAD and Osogovo Maritime Ltd., a company of Navigation Maritime Bulgare EAD was canceled. The ship remains ownership of Bulyard Shipbuilding Industry EAD. The stage of building of this ship is launching in December 2009. Bulyard Shipbuilding Industry EAD is a subsidiary of Bulyard AD, in which Industrial Holding Bulgaria plc holds 61.5% of the voting shares.
Source: Company information (05.10.2009)

The government allowed extension of the planned investments in Navigation Maritime Bulgare (Navibulgar). This is included in the approved addendum to the contract for privatization of 70% of Navibulgar in August. According to the sales contract, purchaser KG Maritime Shipping JSC is obliged to invest BGN 779.88 million for 10 years. The first report period ends on December 31, 2009. Until then the new owner has had to invest BGN 53.6 million. So far, however, the investments are BGN 300 thous. The remaining amount of EUR 53.3 million shall be apportioned for subsequent periods, as per the approved agreement.
Source: Insurance.bg (17.12.2009)