February 22 (SeeNews) - Bulgaria will take delivery of the first of six emergency medical helicopters from Italian aerospace and defence company Leonardo on December 15, after it finalised a procedure for direct negotiations with the supplier, the health ministry said on Wednesday.
The remaining five aircraft and related medical equipment will be delivered by 2025, the ministry said in a press release.
Following direct negotiations launched in January, Leonardo made a final offer of 113.4 million levs ($61.7 million/58 million euro), according to documents published on the public procurement agency's website. The price was reduced compared to the original offer of 160.5 million levs.
The decision by the ministry comes a day after Bulgaria's Supreme Administrative Court upheld an earlier decision by the country's competition authority to turn down a complaint from US aerospace manufacturer Bell Textron, which had contested the start of direct negotiations with the Italian company.
The health ministry also said that it has begun assessing medical establishments across the country with the aim of selecting those suitable for setting up landing pads for the helicopters.
(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)