site.btaRoad Infrastructure Agency Head Dismissed over Irregular Contract Awards

Caretaker Regional Development and Public Works Minister Violeta Koritarova has dismissed Yasen Yordanov as Chair of the Road Infrastructure Agency Board of Directors after an internal audit found illegal actions, Koritarova's Ministry said here on Wednesday. Board member Yordan Valchev has been designated Yordanov's interim replacement.

The audit detected unlawful signing of annexes increasing the cost of contracts by up to 50% and unlawful awards of maintenance contracts for the national road network in the regions of Varna and Dobrich (Northeastern Bulgaria).

The audit, carried out by the Ministry's Internal Audit Directorate and Inspectorate in March 2024, found that after the conclusion of new contracts on December 22, 2023, the contracts for ongoing repair and maintenance dated October 28, 2022 had been automatically terminated. This makes it unlawful to award public procurements under these contracts after December 22, 2023, the Ministry said.

On April 1, the audit report was sent to the Chair of the Road Infrastructure Agency and to the Public Financial Inspection Agency.

During a March 20 parliamentary committee hearing, Yordanov reported that the Road Infrastructure Agency had suspended all payments on awards after December 22, 2023, after suspicion arose that there had been awards with irregularities.