Three contractors will work on the utilization of some 15 tonnes of ammunition under contracts worth over 27 million leva, it emerged from a Defence Ministry press release on Thursday in connection with a procedure on the award of a special public procurement contract on the conduct of utilization of surplus ammunition, BTA reported.

The contractors who have been chosen are TEREM, Dunarit and consortium Bereta Trading and Vex. The signed agreements total 27,721,874 leva, VAT included, for the utilization of 14,945 tonnes of ammunition. The contractors are required to utilize the ammunition without allowing pollution of the environment.

The Defence Ministry said that the procedure was carried out in accordance with effective Bulgarian legislation which regulates the control, the safety and the storage of ammunition, explosives and firearms and the control and safety of the utilization process.

The Defence Ministry will continue the gradual release of surplus ammunition accumulated over the last 20 years. The next public procurement procedure for utilization is expected to be opened in March.

A total of 17 companies have bid to take part in the procedure. These include five foreign companies: VOP-026 and STVGroup of the Czech Republic, EST Entsorgungsgesellschaft MBH and REINMETALL of Germany, and IMI of Israel. All five companies have offered that the process of utilization will be carried out on grounds outside Bulgaria, which contravenes existing regulations, according to which ammunition owned by the Bulgarian Armed Forces meant for utilization cannot be exported.