The second bridge linking Bulgaria and Romania across the Danube has been completed at 81%, the Spanish construction firm FCC announced Monday.

The adjacent infrastructure of the Vidin-Calafat bridge has been completed more than 90%, with the so called Danube Bridge 2 expected to be fully operational at the end of 2012.

The builders have already launched into operation some of the road junction at the bridge, and have completed the international passenger and freight railway terminals in Vidin.

FCC said that "if the weather is nice", the bridge will be fully completed by the end of 2012 but "if the temperatures during the winter months do not allow this, the final layer of asphalt and hydroisolation will be left for 2013".

The company also pointed out that the total price of the bridge is EUR 232 M. Of those, the Bulgarian Finance Ministry has already paid EUR 190 M.

On the Romanian side, the adjacent infrastructure of the bridge has been completed at 95%.

In January 2011, the sum of EUR 25.7 M was added to the total cost of the construction of the second bridge linking Bulgaria and Romania across the Danube River, as agreed by the Bulgarian Parliament.

The bridge will finally be completed by the end of November 2012, Bulgaria's Transport Ministry announced as the Bulgarian Parliament voted to approve the measures taken by Transport Minister Ivaylo Moskovski over the past two years in order to ensure the completion of the bridge between Bulgaria's Vidin and Romania's Calafat.