EU-Funded Mussel Farm in Bulgaria Allegedly a Fraudulent ‘Sand Pit’

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) is investigating a Bulgarian project for an EU-funded mussel farm in the Black Sea, which underwater searches suggest may not exist beyond a sandy seabed. The project, approved in 2020 and slated for completion in 2021, received significant funding from the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and the national budget.

Key Takeaways

• Underwater searches revealed no evidence of mussel farm infrastructure, only sand.
• The expert listed as the project’s author reportedly did not prepare or sign the technological plan.
• Initial inspections in 2021 noted discrepancies and a lack of verifiable underwater facilities.
• The project received over €280,000 in funding.

Project Under Suspicion

The investigation centers on an "innovative farm for cultivated black mussels" located in the Black Sea, southeast of Cape Emine. The project was approved in July 2020 with a deadline of September 2021, and operations were reportedly to commence in July 2021. However, an expert from the Institute of Oceanology in Varna, listed as the author of the technological project, has stated they neither prepared nor signed it.

Initial Red Flags and Seabed Survey

Concerns were first raised in August 2021 when the State Fund ‘Agriculture’ conducted an on-site inspection following a request for final payment. Inspectors found only four boundary buoys and were unable to verify underwater facilities due to a lack of equipment. Significant discrepancies between the declared implementation and the actual conditions were noted.

At the EPPO’s request, a comprehensive seabed survey was conducted on October 1, 2025, covering an area of 240,000 square meters. Investigators and divers from the Burgas Regional Directorate Border Police utilized underwater and aerial drones. The survey located three surface buoys at the designated coordinates, with one missing. Crucially, the buoys were not interconnected, and underwater footage showed no signs of mussel farm infrastructure such as ropes, chains, or pipes – only sand.

Funding and Ongoing Investigation

The beneficiary of the project received a total of €280,230 (BGN 548,075.16). Of this amount, €210,160 (BGN 411,038.37) was funded by the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund, with the remainder coming from the national budget. The investigation is ongoing, with support from the General Directorate of the National Police. All individuals involved are presumed innocent until proven guilty in the competent Bulgarian courts of law.

Sources

• Bulgaria: Underwater searches show that EU-funded mussel farm is just sand, European Public Prosecutor’s Office.
• Bulgaria Faces Scrutiny as EU-Funded Mussel Farm Investigation Reveals Possible Fraud – Novinite.com, Novinite.com.
• EPPO in Bulgaria Conducts Searches in Suspected Procurement Fraud Case Related to Plovdiv’s Green
  Space Project, БТА.