Danube Integrated System for MARking

As an environmentally-friendly and safe transport mode, inland waterway transport (IWT) is an important enabler for economic growth and competitiveness in the Danube Region. The Danube is an international waterway. For coordinated basic infrastructure quality, the transnational cooperation of national waterway authorities is crucial. The common Romanian – Bulgarian sector of the Danube is an important section of the Danube and also, an important sector of the TEN-T Rhine-Danube Core Network Corridor. Transnational harmonised waterway infrastructure for an entire TEN-T transport corridor is an important prerequisite for public authorities in order to be capable of satisfying user needs of the commercial IWT sector. For instance, data about fairway conditions from both Danube countries, Romania and Republic of Bulgaria will help vessel operators to optimise their voyage and transport planning, which is in most cases international. The objective of the project is to enhance and maintain a sustainable and climate resilient transportation network by further developing effective waterway infrastructure. In addition to consolidating common standards and tools, the project’s results and outputs include user oriented information services. These enable rapid information transfer on the quality of the waterway’s infrastructure. The project will consolidate the quality of waterway infrastructure and waterway maintenance, resulting in a higher utilization of waterway transport in the region. Through collaboration, innovative technologies, and careful planning, the project aims to create a safer and more reliable waterway for all users (trade, transportation, and tourism companies), ensuring the preservation of this invaluable European resource. Planned Approach: 1. Systematic Assessment: The project will start with a comprehensive assessment of the current marking system and its limitations. This assessment will have the scope to identify the optimal solution for different component of the integrated marking system. 2. Technology Upgrade: Based on the assessment, the project will introduce advanced technologies for the marking system, including solar-powered lights and GPS-based positioning. These upgrades will enhance accuracy and reliability while reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions; 3. Implementation of the pilot actions: Based on the results of the installation methods analysis, using the new technologies, taking into account the local hydrological conditions, will be installed the marking necessary infrastructure in order to develop the new integrated system. After the new integrated communication system installation, will be done the testing activities, in order to verify the interconnection capacity and monitoring the system parameter’s. 4. Monitoring and Evaluation of the pilot actions: The project will include a robust monitoring and evaluation process to measure the effectiveness of the upgraded and integrated marking system. Continuous feedback will be used to make any necessary adjustments and improvements. The proposed project for improving the marking system on the Danube River introduces several new and original elements that set it apart from traditional approaches. The project's novelty lies in its adoption of sustainable technologies, GPS-based positioning, regional collaboration for the marking activity, and commitment to environmental preservation. These elements make the project unique and promising, addressing navigational challenges on the Danube River in an innovative and inclusive manner. Moreover, DISMAR project, efficiently capitalises on previous project results (i.e. SEE project NEWADA duo, TEN-T Project IRIS Europe 3, CEF Project FAIRway Danube and Romanian Operational Programme – POIM project) to build on existing knowledge and to deploy results for consolidate the quality of waterway infrastructure.

On 10.04.2024, an official event was held at the headquarters of the Ministry of Development, Public Works and Administration in Bucharest, Romania for signing the subsidy contract and thus, the project activities started on 11 April 2024. During the initial reporting period, at the request of AFDJ, the Project Leader, the two waterway administrations established the Project Management Team (PMT) to ensure the effective management and implementation of the entire project. Key roles within the project—specifically, the project manager, financial manager, and communication officer—were identified and mutually agreed upon by the two partners. Additionally, leaders for each work package (WP) and activity were appointed. All these designated individuals are members of the Project Management Team. Within this first reporting period, three PMT meetings were organized. On June 18, 2024, a kick-off meeting was organised by IAPPD, the activity Lider, which included representatives from the ministries of regional development and transport from both Romania and Bulgaria, CBC RoBg representatives, municipal representatives from Bulgaria, and waterway users. To celebrate the event, the first tree was planted at the Romanian administration's headquarters. In Bulgaria, a press release was distributed among the national and regional media, followed by a media monitoring. A project poster was printed and placed in the Bulgarian administration`s premises. In WP1, the development of the Integrated Marking Plan and the Integrated Communication Plan has commenced. Once these plans are completed, the focus will be shifted to developing the Testing and Evaluation Plan for the Quality of the Integrated Marking System. In WP2, in order to facilitate the procurement processes within the project, the partners developed and agreed upon two procurement agreements: the „Agreement on Joint Procurement for the Supply of technical vessels for coastal signaling” and the „Agreement on joint procurement for the supply of floating signals equipped with lamp and AIS communication system for the Integrated Marking System of the Danube fairway”. Both agreements were signed by the legal representatives of the two administrations during the kick-off meeting. The procurement procedure for the coastal signals to be installed on the Romanian side of the Danube has been launched. Each partner will carry out the procurement of these coastal signals independently. Additionally, the procedure for acquiring IT platform development services has also been initiated. In parallel with the launch of the coastal signals procurement procedure, activities to obtain the necessary approvals and permits from environmental authorities have continued. During the recently concluded reporting period, the project partners continued the implementation of the project activities with special attention to coordination, technical implementation, and communication. From the project management point of view, after the completion of the 1st reporting period, AFDJ and EAEMDR prepared the PR1. After the validation of the partner reports AFDJ, as LP, prepared the Project Report, which was submitted in 14.10.2024. The amount requested in the first project report was EUR 8,012.58, an amount reported by the EAEDMR partner. Following the verification the validated amount was EUR 8,012.58. On 26.09.2024, a request for an advance payment was submitted by EAEMDR to the MRDPW and the respective amount (1,368,142.76 BGN) was received. On 15.10.2024, the project partners were invited to participate in the 3rd meeting of the MC for Interreg VI-A Romania-Bulgaria, organized in Bucharest. In 01.10.2024, a meeting was held with BULRIS – State Enterprise Port Infrastructure, Ruse, at which joint activities and cooperation on expanding the project were discussed. The proposals for supplementing the activities of the DISMAR project and also the idea for a new project were presented at the meeting. On 16.10.2024, a PM meeting was organized, in which the implementation status of the project, the next steps in terms of procurement within the project were discussed. Also, the Integrated marking plan was approved. Following the issuance of Decision no. 34/15.10.2024 of the Interreg VI-A Romania-Bulgaria MC, which approved the reallocation of the funds for upgrading the DISMAR Project, the PMT participated together with the representatives of the MA and the JS at the meeting organized on 07.11.2024, in Bucharest In this context, AFDJ, as LP, started the elaboration of the Notification for the amendment of the Subsidy contract. In 18.11.2024, the online visit related to verification of PR no. 1 was organized. During the meeting were discussed the achievements of the first reporting period and were provided the necessary guidelines. Regarding WP 1, the project partners worked on the elaboration of the strategic plans. The integrated marking plan has been finalized and will be updated, if necessary, during the pilot actions, which will be carried out within WP 3. The development of the Testing and Evaluation Plan for Integrated Marking System Quality has begun. This deliverable will be finalized in the next reporting period. As regards WP 2, the following progress is made in the 2nd reporting period: - The procurement procedure for the technical coastal marking vessels was launched, but following the Decision of the MC to supplement the value of the project, this procurement was cancelled. The technical specifications have been updated and the launch of the procurement is estimated as soon as the Amendment of the Subsidy contract will be signed; - The technical documentation has been finalized for the floating signalization procurement, and procurement is also planned to be launched immediately after signing the Amendment of the Subsidy contract; - The procedure for coastal marking was concluded for AFDJ partner. On 28.10.2024, was signed the contract no. 122 with LEMINGS SRL, for the acquisition of 980 coastal signals (1,100 m2), respectively 452-kilometer indicators and 528 coastal signals. EAEMDR prepared the documentation for the procurement procedure. The public procurement includes the production of: kilometer signs - 472 pieces, coastal signs - 528 pieces, coastal lanterns - 20 pieces. In 23.10.2024 the documentation was sent to the Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works for preliminary control. The public procurement was published in 19.11.2024. The offers were opened on 10.12.2024 and a Commission has been appointed for ranking of the offers. - Regarding the IT platform on 28.10.2024, the contract no.123, with Knowledge Design Unit SRL, was signed, in the amount of 970,000 lei without VAT. During the reporting period, more technical meetings and discussions were held between project partners. Regarding the communication activity, information regarding the project was published on the AFDJ website. https://www.afdj.ro/ro/DISMAR. The Project Communication Plan was developed by EAEMDR and approved by the Lead Partner. In 21.11.2024, trees were planted near the EAEMDR headquarters. Afterwards a press release in this regard was prepared and disseminated. On 31.10.2024, AFDJ representatives participated in the Annual Conference of the Interreg VI-A RO-BG Programme, organized in Piatra Olt, Romania, during which project was presented. The project was presented at the Danube Information Services Conference (DISC 2024), organized in Varna, Bulgaria, between 03.12.2024 – 04.12.2024. In order to ensure the promotional materials within the procurement procedure for the supply of promotional materials was started, through the Necessity Report no. 40324/ 27.11.2024. During the recently concluded reporting period, AFDJ and EAEMDR continued the implementation of the project, in particular, the focus was on the preparation and signing of the Addenda for the Co-financing and Subsidy Contracts, the launch of the procurement procedures and on the elaboration of the project Strategic Plans. As assumed, in order to ensure good communication between partners, the Project Management Team organized monthly meetings, In this context, the meetings of the PMT were organized in: -17.12.2024–hosted by EAEMDR, location: EAEMDR premises The meeting was focused on discussing technical specifications and project implementation details for the coastal signalization procedure as well as the floating signs, IT platform development, data transfer solutions and communication protocols. Additions have been made to The Marking Communication Plan. For the Testing and Evaluation Plan, the contribution of each partner was presented. The meeting concluded with discussions about the partnership agreement, upcoming SCOM meetings and PMM, main project reporting requirements. -22.01.2025–hosted by AFDJ, location: AFDJ premises Within the meeting were discussions for setting up the upcoming meeting of SCOM in combination with PMM. The agendas for the events and the invitations for the participants were a topic of the meeting as well. Another topic of discussion, were the common procurements -12.02.2025–hosted by EAEMDR,location:EAEMDR premises The meeting began with a discussion of the status of the joint procurement of vessels and floating signs. The final version of the Marking Communication Plan was discussed and detailed guidance was given by both parties on the preparation of the Testing and Evaluation Plan. The partners identified the next goals and steps to achieve them in terms of project activities. -21.03.2025–online meeting hosted by AFDJ, , was discussed the project progress: status of joint procurement for vessels and floating and coastal signs. Partners discussed guidelines for the preparation of the Testing and Evaluation Plan, as well as upcoming communication events for 2025. Also, during the reporting period, the first SCOM meeting was organized in Ruse on 13.02.2025, by EAEMDR partner, at the Cosmopolitan Hotel and Wellness, Ruse. The meeting was attended by representatives of the MA from the Ministry of Regional Development of Romania, JS, Regional Governor of Ruse District and the Deputy Mayor for Transport and other local authorities. According to the Agenda of the event, the National plans for waterway management actions prepared so far were presented through brief presentation. The partners introduced the participants in the meeting to future activities related to the delivery of coastal and floating signs, vessels and the functioning of the future IT platform. On 07.03.2025, at the invitation of the MA, representatives of the 2 project partners, participated in a meeting with Operational Strategic Importance communication officers, organized by the Ministry of Development, Public Works and Administration of Romania (MDPWA) of Romania, in order to discuss the communication activities planned and the recommendations and guidelines of the EU regarding information and publicity regarding projects of operational strategic importance under the INTERREG VI-A Romania-Bulgaria program. Addendum no. 1 to Subsidy Contract No 75713/10.04.2024 and Addendum no. 1 to Co-financing Contract No 75717/10.04.2024 were signed and entered into force on 09.02.2025, and the budget allocated to the "Equipment" chapter was increased by the amount of EUR 1,348,270.30 for each partner. In this context, Addenda to the Agreements for joint procurement regarding the procurement of technical vessels and floating signs were signed. The signing of the above-mentioned Addenda allowed the launch of the procurement procedure for technical vessels, which was published in SEAP and OJEU on 20.02.2025 and for floating signs. Regarding the aprocurement of coastal signals, on 28.01.2025 the supply contract was finalized and the final invoice was issued, no. 20250089/ 10.02.2025, in the amount of 334,089 lei without VAT (397,565.91 lei with VAT), which was paid on 18.02.2025. In order to ensure the dissemination materials within the project, AFDJ signed the DA Order no. 37159525/ 27.11.2024 with SC COLOR DATA ADVERTISING for all promotional materials provided within the project, namely: pen and pencil set, pens, conference notes, conference folder, bags, USB card. The materials were provided on 13.01.2025. The Commission for the reception, appointed by the Decision of the Director General no. 2/ 08.01.2025, signed the Acceptance Minutes no. 186/ 13.01.2025. As a result of the reception, the Invoice no. 3597/ 15.01.2025 in the amount of 27,955.07 lei with VAT. Also, promotional items have been produced for the project, by EAEMDR, namely sets of pens and pencils, eco-chemicals, textile bags and a 32GB USB flash drive. In the 4th reporting period, the project registered the following progress: Related to the project management, in order to monitor the implementation of the project, monthly meetings of the Project Management Team were organized: on 30.05.2025, 27.06.2025, 16.07.2025. The PMT meetings were organized online by both project partners, and the meeting on 16.07.2025 was organized in person, by AFDJ Galati in Comana, Giurgiu, back-to-back with the SCOM meeting. This event was attended by representatives of the Managing Authority (Ministry of Development, Public Works and Administration, Romania), National Authority (Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works, Bulgaria), the representatives of the Joint Secretariat of the Interreg VI-A Romania-Bulgaria Programme, Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure (Naval Transport Department and Danube Strategy Priority Area 1a). Following the submission of the Project Report no. 2, the online visit was organized on 11.04.2025. This online meeting was organized by JS in accordance with the provisions of the Project Implementation Manual for the Interreg VI-A Romania-Bulgaria Programme. The main topic of the meeting was the clarification of the aspects of the Project Report, submitted on 24.03.2025 and also for the provision of information on the project progress, since the end of the reporting period to the date of the meeting and estimates for the next reporting period. The meeting was attended by project teams from both partners. On 18.06.2025 the representatives of both project partners participated in the Workshop for the INTERREG programme, organized by JS in Ruse, Bulgaria. The purpose of the session was to support the beneficiaries in their daily work. The training focused on practical aspects related to project implementation and periodic reporting. The event provided the necessary framework to obtain answers and clarify certain aspects related to the rules of the funding program, exchange ideas and build confidence in our project management teams. On 07.08.2025, JS organized the Online Visit regarding the approved Partner Report no. 3, filed out on 17.07.2025. For estimating the cash flow needs at programme level, AFDJ Galati as lead partner, prepared and submitted to JS, a forecast on behalf of both project partners regarding the amounts to be requested for National Control verification in the next 3 months (per partners and per months in period July 2025- September 2025) and the forecast of the procurement contracts and expenditures on behalf of all project partners of project ROBG00090 for 2025. In terms of dissemination and communication activity, during the reporting period was sent information about the DISMAR project for posting in the special section dedicated to the project on the program's website: https://www.interregviarobg.eu/ro/osi/ROBG00090 dedicated to OSI (Operations of Strategic Importance - in which DISMAR project is also included). Within WP 1, during the reporting period, the deliverable "Testing and evaluation plan for integrated marking system quality jointly developed" was completed and was presented and approved during the SCOM meeting organised in 17.07.2025. With the completion of this deliverable, all WP 1 outputs have been achieved. Regarding the procurements under the project, part of WP 2, during the reporting period the following were achieved: - The common tender procedure for the marking vessels was launched by publishing in OJEU the participation announcement in 20.02.2025. The procedure was completed and was signed the contract no. 57/ 07.08.2025. A kick-off meeting was organized within the contract, in order to establish a strict schedule, so that the first two stages of the contract would be achieved by the end of October, to reach the amount requested for national control by the end of the month marking the half of the implementation period. - The common tender procedure for floating signalization was launched by publishing in OJEU the participation announcement in 14.04.2025. At the end of reporting period, the procedure report was completed and was submitted to the National Authority for Public Procurement, in order to receive the unconditional assent for the procedure. The contract no. 63 was signed in 21.08.2025. - Within the contract for the development of the IT platform, in June 2025, according to the schedule of contract no. 123/ 28.10.2024, the following deliverables were handed over: o Implementation report for electronic navigation map elements integration component; o Implementation report for positioning data integration component; o Implementation report for RIS services integration component; o Implementation report for storage and logging component. After the acceptance of these deliverables, the payment of 25% of the total value of the contract (242,500 lei without VAT) was made. The Contract for the supply of coastal signalization No Д-11/07.04.2025, signed by EAEMDR is ongoing.