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The Bulgarian Interim Minister of Economy Kiril Petkov announced on Wednesday (7 July) that over 600 foreign companies have come forward with intentions to invest in Bulgaria as a result of a government-organized contest between the trade attachés of The Bulgarian Commercial and Economic Sections (CES).
The most notable company is Next.e.GO, a German startup with negotiations well underway for an electric cars manufacturing plant in the city of Lovech.
CES is an organisation of the Bulgarian trade attachés abroad, which is designed to help improve the country’s access to foreign markets, support local producers and exporters while increasing investment activity and attracting foreign tourists.
On one hand, the idea behind the completion was to kick start foreign direct investment (FDI) in post-pandemic Bulgaria. On the other - the plan aimed to motivate competition between the attachés themselves. The result is clear: over 600 letters from foreign companies with the intention of investment and cooperation have been sent to the Ministry of Economy during the past five weeks.
Minister Kiril Petkov was adamant that the next step for the country should be to focus on materialising these good intentions into some tangible, concrete deals in the coming months.
Minister Petkov said the deal with Next.e.GO was the result of five-week-long negotiations,
Source: The Ministry of Economy
After the landmark deal with Volkswagen about a new plant in Bulgaria fell through last year, the 140 million euro investment by Next.e.GO is welcomed news for the country.
The deal is yet to be finalised, however, Minister Petkov said he will make the official announcement on Saturday during a showcase of the electric cars in front of the Ministry of Economy.
He also specified that this deal is the result of five weeks of intense daily negotiations between the company and the interim government. He pointed out that the company is in a hurry to open the plant, as “competition in the electric car market is fierce and the first one wins”.
The plans are to build a plant in Lovech by the year 2023 bringing 1,000 jobs to the region. At the same time, the electric cars will use parts also manufactured in Bulgaria by the German company Bosch. Such an industrial cluster between manufacturing and assembly would provide even more added value for the region.
Most letters of interest come from the United Kingdom, the United States and Germany, mostly in the field of medical devices, carbon capture systems, electricity storage solutions, high-tech companies for products in the space industry and others.
“We had the opportunity to talk to the European Space Agency. Their representatives will come to our country in September to assess our capacity in this area. The best radio amplifiers for sending signals between the Earth and space belong to a Bulgarian company, we beat the Americans and the Japanese,” added Minister Petkov.
Saturday, the day when the official government announcement will take place is one day before the scheduled parliamentary elections in Bulgaria. The current interim government took over running the country on 12 May 2021, after the elected parties were unable to form a government.
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