Planned work on the railway infrastructure in Serbia and Romania may lead to disruptions in the transportation of scrap metal in the Balkans.
According to market sources, the restrictions could affect scrap metal exports to Northern Macedonia and imports for Stomana Industry. Under these conditions, suppliers using marine transport can gain additional advantages.
Bulgaria, Romania and Serbia have already started discussing measures that would reduce the impact of the upcoming work on international freight transport. The Bulgarian Ministry of Transport and Communications reported that the head of the department, Georgi Georgiev, held an online meeting with Romanian Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defense and Acting Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Radudinel Mirutsa, as well as with Serbian Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure Aleksandra Sofronicevic.
At the meeting, the parties discussed the possible consequences of the planned work on the railway infrastructure in Serbia and Romania for international transportation.
Serbia intends to close the Nis—Dimitrovgrad section for about 200 days from September 2026 due to infrastructure upgrades.
Traffic on the Giurgiu-Nord—Ruse route is expected to be suspended in Romania. A complete traffic stop is planned for the period from April to December 2027.
The Bulgarian side stressed that restrictions on these two routes could seriously affect cargo flows between Central Europe, the Balkans and Turkey. Bulgarian railway operators also expressed concern about the possible consequences of the closures and the need to find alternative routes.
The Bulgarian Minister of Transport and Communications proposed to determine in advance the time windows for the movement of freight trains in order to avoid a complete shutdown of communication.
The three countries agreed to continue negotiations at the level of the heads of their railway infrastructure companies. The main focus will be on the coordination of work, the use of available capacities and the search for operational solutions to reduce the negative impact on cross-border transport.
According to market sources, the closure of the railway connection between Bulgaria and Serbia for almost 200 days may negatively affect the supply of scrap by rail. It is also noted that restrictions on the Romanian direction may increase the importance of alternative routes and maritime supplies.
The planned restrictions may, in particular, complicate the export of scrap metal to Northern Macedonia and supplies for Stomana Industry enterprises.