Implementation of a construction project for the deepwater fairway Danube-Black Sea at the Ukrainian delta section has been extended till 2011, the Transport and Communications Ministry has said.

Under the Cabinet resolution of November 11, 2009, the project implementation requires no extra costs from the state budget. The amount of additional financing in 2009 meets the sum of actual financing of creation of the Danube-Black Sea fairway at the Ukrainian section of delta set in the financial budget of the Delta-Lotsman SE for 2009.

The funds for 2010-2011 will be taken into account by UkrMorRichFlot in draft financial plans of the Delta-Lotsman SE.

The first stage of the channel opened on August 26, 2004. Its length is 172.36 kilometers, and the length of the artificial sea approach canal is 3.4 kilometers. The width of the passage on the bottom is 85 meters at the rectilinear sector, and 100 meters at the curvilinear one.

The channel runs across the territory of the Danube biosphere reserve, which is part of the global network of UNESCO refuges.

The Danube-Black Sea deepwater fairway provides for a 24-h two-way navigation.