EU Middle Corridor strategy opens new prospects for Burgas Port

MF Port Burgas AD hosted a working meeting with representatives of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR) Association, bringing together delegates from Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Türkiye, Poland and Bulgaria. The meeting was covered by the Burgas Media news portal.

As the association’s only port member on Europe’s Black Sea coast, the company briefed the TITR delegation on its current development projects, key facilities, infrastructure and operational capabilities. MF Port Burgas is the concessionaire of the Burgas East-2 and Burgas West terminals.

The port operator, which has been a member of the TITR Association since June 2023, expects the European Union’s growing focus on the Middle Corridor to support its development by enabling it to handle increasing China-Europe cargo flows.

For Bulgaria, the planned regional connectivity summit, which is expected to be held jointly with the country’s prime minister, is also considered significant.

During the meeting, MF Port Burgas CEO Boris Balev emphasised that partnership, coordination and the practical exchange of experience are essential to the successful development of the route.

According to the company’s announcement, such cooperation should involve ports, railway companies, maritime carriers, logistics operators and the institutions participating in the project.

The viability of the China-Europe rail corridor is reflected in the cargo volumes currently handled by the company. Transit time from Xi’an, the administrative centre of China’s central Shaanxi province, to Burgas currently stands at approximately 20 days. From the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, cargo then continues its journey through the European rail network.

The growing connectivity is in line with the European Union’s broader plans for the Middle Corridor. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has described the route as a strategic connectivity initiative linking Central Asia and the South Caucasus directly with European markets.

Under the EU’s Global Gateway initiative, the bloc plans to mobilise up to 12 billion euros in public and private investment for the project. The funding is intended to diversify transport routes, triple trade flows and reduce freight transit times by 2030.

By Tamilla Hasanova