Bulgarian Ports
Infrastructure Company

With great interest and overcrowded hall, the Book of BPI Co. “Lighthouses and Other Means of Navigation Support on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast (1878 – 2018) was presented at the Seafarer’s house in Varna on June 20, 2018. The event was honoured by the Regional Governor Stoyan Pasev, the commander of Navy Rear Admiral Mitko Petev and a number of representatives of the maritime industry.

“Such a complete guide for the Bulgarian Black Sea lighthouses has not been published in Bulgaria so far. This book is a symbolic gift not only to all of us but also to the next generations” commented the Director General of Bulgarian Ports Infrastructure Company (BPI Co.) Anguel Zabourtov and added that BPI Co. has always had a special regard for the protection and preservation of history.

Rear Admiral Mitko Petev stressed that the lighthouse is one of the symbols of the sea. Before seeing the shore, the sailor first sees the lighthouse and the hope that salvation is nearby. The lighthouses are the rescuers of thousands of sailors, he commented and added that the Navy and BPI Co. have joint commitment to maintain and manage these “towers of salvation”. The publication of this book shows that we have a unification of the Bulgarian maritime idea. It is not a monopoly for anyone, it means empathy, the Rear Admiral said.

For the long path from the birth of the idea to its realization and the difficulties they have encountered on this path, the authors Atanas Panayotov and Mariana Krasteva told. They have collected and provided the most complete and most reliable information related to all navigation facilities, guidance and regulation of the Black Sea coastal shipping, waterways and port areas.

The striking lights of the Black Sea lighthouses shine on a total of 240 pages in the bilingual edition. The stories of our lighthouses fascinate and captivate the readers with the first lines. The book carries us in the past and at the same time looks at the distant future, where Varna lighthouse with the image of St. Nikolay the Wonderworker, the Burgas lighthouse, the Shabla lighthouse, the lighthouse at Cape Kaliakra and all the other lighted towers continue to shine with an even brighter light.