Serbia Initiates International Tender for Removal of Sunken German Fleet from the Danube

In the Official Journal of the European Union, at the request of the Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure of Serbia, the information about the carrying out of the public procurement procedure for the selection of the contractor on the realization of the project of the Removal of the Sunken German Fleet from the Second World War from the Danube was published yesterday.

After two and a half years of the work on the preparation of the project, the preparation of the technical and tendering documentation, including the surveying of the presence of non-exploded ordnance in the sunken ships, and the securing of the finances, we are entering the final phase of the realization of this project, according to the website of the ministry.

– The Government of Serbia has decided, after decades of the traffic and port infrastructure on the Danube being neglected, to launch investments which will improve the development of water traffic and water corridors through investments in ports, navigation safety, but also the development of our rivers, so that they would be navigable 365 days a year – said Minister Tomislav Momirovic.

The project includes the demining and removal of 21 sunken ships, which narrow down the width of the navigable waterway of the Danube from the proscribed 180 meters to only 90 meters. The ships can be found in a location downstream from the Hydro Power and Navigation System Djerdap 2 and were sunk toward the end of the Second World War by the decision of the German army to slow down the advance of the Red Army on the Danube toward Germany by sinking the ships, it is added.

The value of the works has been estimated at EUR 29 million, and the funds are secured from a loan of the European Investment Bank (EIB) and grants from the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF).

The details can be found HERE.