Dock repair of the Heroes of Shipka ferry has been completed at the Illichivsk (Chornomorsk) shipyard. The ferry is now docked at a pier, where repair work is continuing. As the Ukrainian Railways public joint-stock company (Ukrzaliznytsia) told the CFTS portal, all the repair work is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2017.

Tenders for repair and technical servicing of the Heroes of Shipka ferry were invited on 25 August 2016. The Leninska Kuznia shipyard was the winner of the tender, and a contract was signed with it on 31 October. The ferry arrived at the Illichivsk shipyard, which is the subcontractor for the repair work, on 30 November and the repair work began on 1 December.

In addition, tenders for repair of the Heroes of Plevna ferry, another ferry belonging to Ukrzaliznytsia, were invited on 6 January. The deadline for submitting tenders is 6 February. Bidding will begin on 14 March.

After completion of the repairs, the ferries will operate on the Illichivsk Ferry–Poti/Batumi route.

Ukrzaliznytsia recently announced plans to complete the repair of the first of the two existing ferries between late January and early February.