site.btaEconomy Minister Discusses Investment Opportunities with Representatives of Leading South Korean Company

Economy Minister Bogdan Bogdanov met with representatives of South Korea's largest company for implementation of infrastructure and energy projects on Tuesday in Sofia. They discussed opportunities for investment in Bulgaria and intensification of bilateral cooperation in a number of sectors, including automotive, energy, transport, information and communication technologies, healthcare and innovation.

The foreign delegation was accompanied by Korean Ambassador to Bulgaria Jongin Bae. The company representatives were invited to Bulgaria during Bogdanov’s working visit to South Korea late last year so they can explore investment opportunities and potential partnerships.

The discussion focused on the positioning of South Korean companies in the industrial zones in Bulgaria, as well as on the implementation of joint projects in Bulgaria.

The meeting also touched upon the opportunities for the implementation of public-private partnership projects, with the Economy Minister pointing out that Bulgaria is a driving force for many of the important infrastructure projects in the region.

"Work is underway to build an investment portal, which aims to shorten the investment process and facilitate companies' access to summarized information about the opportunities Bulgaria offers," Bogdanov said. This will also facilitate communication between businesses and all state institutions. The Minister also mentioned the regional aid mechanisms, pointing out that in regions with higher unemployment, where new jobs need to be created, the thresholds for state aid are higher.

"Bulgaria is becoming more and more attractive for investors. We reported record investments in 2023 not only of new companies, but also of those that reinvest in the country," Bogdanov added.

The Minister stressed that a memorandum on bilateral trade and stimulation of investments between the countries is to be signed and efforts are being made for this to happen during a session of the Bulgarian-Korean Economic Cooperation Commission this year in Bulgaria.

The meeting was also attended by Deputy Economy Minister Nikolay Pavlov, State Consolidation Company Executive Director Ivan Zangochev and National Company of Industrial Zones Executive Director Konstantin Palaveev.