The garbage crisis in Sofia has already caused sharp political reactions. Why did it come to this, what is the Sofia Municipality doing, what is the outcome… Nadezhda Bobcheva, deputy mayor of Sofia for the "Green System, Ecology and Land Use" department, spoke to FACTI.
- Ms. Bobcheva, municipal councilors warned about a year ago that a problem was looming with the cleaning of garbage in Sofia. What did not happen in this one year to get to the current situation?
- From the very beginning of the crisis, we have most often heard the criticism that the public procurement for waste collection was launched too late, but it is important to clarify that the reason for the delay is that the procurement itself was delayed by about 3 months at the Public Procurement Agency (PPA). This delay affected the schedule of all subsequent steps, including the organization of the service in areas with expiring contracts and the planning of municipal capacity. We have said it many times.
What is conveniently missed by our critics is the truth. And it is simple - that the reason we do not have signed long-term contracts is not the delay in the procurement, but the refusal to accept unreasonably high prices - between 350 and 380 BGN/ton, which would increase the garbage fee for Sofia residents for years to come.
This would be a very convenient solution for us and extremely inconvenient for the citizens, because if we had accepted these conditions of people who are simply used to accepting all their conditions, the result would have been a huge and unbearable increase in the garbage fee for many people. If we had caved in and chosen temporary comfort over a long-term sustainable solution,
this would have meant that every household in Sofia would have paid about 1,000 leva, without receiving a more regular, better quality or better service in any respect.
Thanks to the approach we have chosen, this will not happen, and the savings compared to the highest offers are nearly 400 million leva. Funds that we did not allow to leave the pockets of Sofia residents.
- What is the organization of the collection and removal of household waste to date?
- To date, the service is organized on a zonal principle. The main thing is that in 7 out of 7 zones with expired contracts, a solution has been found so that there is no interruption of service until the signing of new long-term contracts. Six of these zones have annexed or signed new contracts, and only Zone 3 („Slatina“, „Poduyane“, „Izgrev“) is served entirely with municipal capacity by the teams of the Capital Waste Treatment Plant (CWTP). Here is the specific situation in each zone:
Zone 1 („Sredets“, „Lozenets“, „Studentski“)
- The service is provided by extending the contracts.
- There is no interruption and no increase in the garbage fee.
- Price: 209 BGN/ton
Zone 2 („Pancharevo“, „Iskar“, „Kremikovtsi“)
- The contract has been extended with an annex.
- Price: 209 BGN/ton.
Zone 4 („Ilinden“, „Nadezhda“, “Serdika“)
- Temporary service by contractors from the border - Zone 5 and Zone 7.
Prices remain unchanged - respectively from 175 BGN/ton. and 209 BGN/ton (depending on which zone the respective region borders)
Decisions of the CPC and the Supreme Administrative Court are awaited.
Zone 5 („Vrbnitsa“, „Novi Iskar“, „Bankya“)
Annexed contract.
Price: 175 BGN/ton
A long-term contract with the selected contractor is also to be signed.
Zone 6 („Lyulin“, „Krasna Polyana“, „Krasno Selo“)
A long-term contract with the municipal company „Sofekostroy“ has been in effect since January 1, 2026.
The company is expanding its capacity with new garbage collectors and snow removal machines, and according to their data, it is expected that by the end of January all the necessary equipment for the maintenance of the three regions in the zone will have been purchased.
Price: 199 BGN/ton
Zone 7 („Vazrazhdane“, „Oborishte“, „Triaditsa“)
The contract has been extended without interruption.
Indexation of 19%.
Price: 209 BGN/ton.
Zone 3 („Poduyane“, „Slatina“, „Izgrev“) – CRISIS MODE
Service with municipal capacity:
-- „Poduyane“ and „Slatina“ – through SPTO;
-- “Izgrev“ – with the region's own capacity.
From January 8:
-- 9 large garbage trucks, an increase to 11 is expected;
-- additionally, smaller trucks for narrow streets are operating, as well as specialized equipment - multi-lifts and clamps, where necessary.
- In which regions of the capital are there currently no garbage trucks or is the capacity insufficient?
- There is no zone for which garbage trucks have not been purchased. In recent months, we have worked and continue to work hard to increase the capacity of both the company “Sofekostroy” (which cleans “Lyulin“, “Krasno Selo“ and “Krasna Polyana“), and the Sofia Waste Treatment Company, which operates in the two zones that have emerged as critical - Zone 3 (SPTO). For this purpose, by a decision of the Sofia Municipal Council, funds in the amount of 9 million BGN were allocated to “Sofekostroy” for the purchase of the necessary number of machines to ensure the implementation of the full range of cleaning services, which include over 40 types of different activities - garbage collection is just one of them. In November 2025, the Municipal Council decided to increase the staff of the Sofia Waste Treatment Company from 307 to 439 employees, as well as to include new assets for management - a rooftop photovoltaic power plant, a solid waste compactor, a shredder for end-of-life tires and mobile centers for separate waste collection. The goal is to increase the capacity and efficiency of waste treatment and recovery activities in the capital.
- In which regions are annexes agreed to the waste collection contracts and what is the term of these annexes?
- I have already mentioned them. Annexes have been signed for zones 1, 2, 4, 5 and 7, as they are temporary measures to guarantee the continuity of the service. Their term is directly tied to the completion of the court procedures and appeals and will accordingly be valid until the proceedings in the CPC and the Supreme Administrative Court are concluded and long-term contracts are signed.
- Are the annexes a temporary measure or a real solution to the problem?
- The annexes are temporary and are intended to guarantee continuity of service until the long-term contracts are signed.
- How long can the work with the existing annexes continue without leading to a new crisis?
- The temporary organization with annexes can function without problems until the court procedures for the relevant areas are completed.
- In most areas where annexes have been signed, the old service price is maintained - around 200 leva. At the same time, companies are insisting on a price close to 400 leva. Is there any logic to such a sharp increase?
- No. The prices at which the annexes were signed are significantly lower than the offers of the companies, which insist on 350-380 leva/ton. Sofia Municipality refused to sign such contracts because this would mean tens of millions more expenses for the city budget and a drastic increase in the garbage fee for citizens.
- For the most part, the capital is served by companies related to “Titan“ and its subsidiaries. At what prices do these companies carry out the garbage collection?
- The prices under the current contracts and annexes are 175-209 leva/ton, significantly lower than the offers submitted by the companies that took part in the order and are mainly related to key figures from the “underground” world.
- The “Izgrev“ district organizes its own waste collection. How are things there and what are the results of this model?
- The “Izgrev“ district uses its own capacity - 5 large trucks, which they rented with the financing provided by the Sofia Municipality. The model allows flexibility and direct control over quality, and the results currently show that the service is performed rhythmically and without interruptions.
- What capacity does the municipal waste collection company currently have?
- “Sofekostroy“ (the company servicing Zone 6) received a loan in the amount of 9 million leva by decision of the SOS, with the purpose of allocating the funds being precisely to increase the technical capacity of the organization. Within January, the newly purchased equipment will be on site and the company will have the necessary machinery to regularly perform all cleaning services in the area.
- How much can this capacity be increased and how many areas could the municipal company take over so that there are no similar problems in years when the new contracts expire?
- With the planned investments and the new equipment, “Sofekostroy“ can fully take over the servicing of Zone 6, which covers the three areas “Lyulin”, “Krasno Selo” and “Krasna Polyana”. The goal is to eliminate dependencies on private companies and ensure continuity of service. The exact number will depend on schedules and resources, but the company's capacity will allow for in-depth control over the quality and efficiency of waste collection.
- Public procurement for waste collection is being appealed. What are the main reasons for these appeals and to what extent do they contribute to the current situation?
- Appeals are most often due to disagreement of some of the participants with the decision of the commission to select a contractor or to terminate the procedure, as is the case with Zone 3. These appeals, as well as institutional pressure, are actually two of the main reasons for the garbage crisis. I will give an example of Zone 4 - the areas of “Serdika”, “Ilinden” and “Nadezhda”. There we had a decision to select a contractor, which one of the participants decided to appeal, and this was a prerequisite for a serious delay in the permanent decision for the zone. We requested permission from the CPC for preliminary execution of the contract with the selected contractor, in order to guarantee that there would be no interruption of service.
The CPC did not allow it on the grounds that “the reputation of the institution” is also of public importance, as is the provision of cleaning services.
The case was transferred to the Supreme Administrative Court, which on January 12 ruled against the Municipality, and this also did not allow the preliminary execution of the new contract. The reasons given are that continuity of service can also be ensured by signing an annex to the contract with the current contractor, until all appeal procedures are completed. The problem, however, is that the court ruled a few days after the contract with the previous contractor had expired.
- When can the current crisis with garbage collection in Sofia actually end?
- After the court procedures for all appealed orders are completed and new ones are started, where the procedures for selecting a contractor have been terminated.
- During the garbage crisis in the areas of “Lyulin“ and “Krasno Selo“ from a non-governmental organization literally in two days purchased two trucks from Austria and provided them to the municipal company. Is such flexibility possible now?
- Such an approach is possible, but it depends on the availability of equipment and urgent financial solutions. Currently, the Sofia Municipality relies on its significantly expanded own capacity and temporary provision of trucks from other administrations.
- Is it possible for the municipality to independently purchase quality garbage trucks at a favorable price, instead of relying entirely on private companies?
- Yes, and it is already being done. At the end of 2025, a public procurement was announced by the municipality for the purchase of 4 garbage trucks. Two companies that applied for it subsequently appealed the announcement of the procurement. After the appeals, the procurement was terminated, and the same participants also appealed its termination. We are currently in the process of preparing for re-announcement.
- We are currently seeing streets covered in garbage. In what time frame can the established organization sort things out and remove the accumulated waste?
- The organization is focused on priority areas and accumulated containers. In Zone 3, there are already 12 large and at least 4 small trucks, and the capacity is constantly increasing, and soon there will be 11 trucks with crews on site for “Slatina” and “Poduyane” and 5 for “Izgrev”. The goal is to service all containers at least once every few days, and realistically, with the current equipment and personnel, the critical points will be sorted and mastered within the month.