site.btaBulgaria Expected to Become Full-fledged Member of ELI ERIC by End-2024

It is expected that by the end of 2024 Bulgaria will become a full-fledged member of ELI ERIC laser-based research infrastructure, the Education and Science Ministry said on Tuesday. The consortium is recognized as the world's largest and most advanced high-power laser infrastructure.

Earlier in the day, Deputy Minister of Education and Science Nikolay Vitanov opened a working meeting on Bulgaria's opportunities and challenges within the consortium.

An agreement for the successful accession of Bulgaria to ELI ERIC has been drawn up at the national level by leading laser physics organizations and universities. The Institute of Electronics and the Institute of Solid State Physics at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, and the Faculty of Physics of the St Kliment Ohridski University of Sofia are part of a national consortium, which will be integrated into the European one.

"Bulgaria's participation in the ELI ERIC will open up new opportunities for our country's involvement in larger European projects," Vitanov said. Bulgarian scientists will have access to advanced equipment and scientific laboratories will be provided with additional equipment, which will enable new and higher quality scientific experiments.

Vitanov added that the institutions will continue to support the development of Bulgarian laser science.

The working meeting was attended by ELI ERIC Director General Allen Weeks, Bulgaria’s Deputy Minister of Innovation and Growth Prof. Dr Georgi Angelov, experts from scientific organizations and universities.

Organizations from Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia, and Romania participate in ELI ERIC. Bulgaria has held an observer status in the consortium for three years now. It is expected to become a full-fledged member and have the opportunity to benefit from the members’ technological experience, the Ministry said.