Bulgarian Transport Minister Danail Papazov has signed on Thursday the contract for the repair of the Central Railway Station in Bulgaria's capital Sofia.

The repair, which is expected to be finished before the end 2015, will be carried out by a consortium comprising 3 companies that offered to work for BGN 56 M, VAT not included.

A contract for construction oversight and control has been awarded for the price tag of BGN 1.379 M.

"According to the signed contract, 11,000 square meters of commercial buildings - shops, restaurants, cafes, as well as a Center for Coordination of the whole country's railway traffic, are to be constructed," said Transport Minister Papazov.

Special office buildings the Bulgarian State Railways (BDZ), a completely new design of the central building, and implementation of renewable sources of energy are among the innovations included in the project, announced the minister.

No major renovations have been made until now to the 36-years old building of the  Sofia Central Railway Station, causing the current state of heavy amortization of the premise.

The current station, the biggest one in Bulgaria, was constructed 1972–74. The first building of Sofia Railways was built in 1888 and then it was the largest on the whole Balkan Peninsula.