Bulgarian construction sector fears for EU funds

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SOFIA, April 5 (AFP): Bulgaria's crisis-hit construction sector fears that many EU-funded infrastructure projects will be mothballed as the general election approaches and EU aid remains blocked over corruption concerns.
"The government must urgently seek ways to unblock the (EU) money so that the big infrastructure projects can get off the ground as soon as possible," Nikolay Mihaylov, chairman of the transport section of the construction industry association, told AFP.
"Companies are nervous. The crisis has left 75 per cent of them without work and these projects are now a matter of survival for a sector that used to be a major driver of economic growth," said Veliko Zhelev, executive director of the road construction industry association.
Both Mihaylov and Zhelev were pessimistic, however, about getting any big projects started by end-2009.