U.S.-based solar project developer SunEdison said on Thursday it has completed a 155 million euro ($206.7 million) non-recourse debt financing arrangement for the construction of a 60.4 megawatts-peak solar power plant in Bulgaria. The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has provided 46.1 million euro and mobilised an additional 41.1 million euro from UniCredit Bank Austria through a syndication loan, while Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) extended $50 million (37.5 million euro) parallel loan, SunEdison said in a statement. Bulgaria's UniCredit Bulbank has further provided a local currency VAT facility worth 58.7 million levs ($40 million/30 million euro). The solar power plant will be built on 100 hectares at Karadzhalovo, in southern Bulgaria, and will have 42 photovoltaic blocks of variable capacity. In the first full year of operation, the system is expected to generate sufficient energy to power 27,000 homes. All of the generated output will be sold to Bulgaria's national electricity company, NEK, under a 20-year power purchase agreement. The project was launched in September last year and was interconnected in March. SunEdison said it expects to complete the sale of the equity of this power plant in 2012. “The investment in Karadzhalovo is our largest single solar financing to date,” the statement quoted IFC director for Europe and Central Asia Tomasz Telma as saying.
Source: Capital Dàily (30.03.2012)

ABB to Invest USD 23 M in 4th Bulgarian Factory, Add 600 Jobs Swiss-based global engineering group ABB plans to invest about USD 23 M to build its second greenfield factory in Bulgaria, the company announced Thursday. The new facility will sustain ABB's strong growth in the power and automation business and meet future demand in Europe, it said. What is to become ABB's second factory in the Plovdiv area in Southern Bulgaria will act as an internal ABB supplier of low voltage control and medium voltage products. When fully operational, it will employ around 600 people. For Peter Simon, Country Manager of ABB in Bulgaria, the investment underlines the value of Bulgaria as a base for efficient manufacturing. "We are pleased to continue the development of ABB in Bulgaria and to bring international expertise and new jobs to the region," he is quoted as saying. The groundbreaking ceremony, marking the start of the construction work for the ABB new factory, took place on December 6, 2012, in the presence of Bulgarian President Rosen Plevneliev. ABB's new Bulgarian production unit will be built on a total area of about 15 000 square meters and it is scheduled to be operational by the end of 2013. This is the second major investment by ABB in Bulgaria's Plovdiv region. The first greenfield factory was built in 2009 and now employs over 700 people. ABB operates in Bulgaria through three companies in five locations. The three ABB production units in the country are located in Petrich, Sevlievo and Rakovski. The new greenfield investment will become the fourth ABB factory in Bulgaria. It will bring the total number of ABB employees in Bulgaria to 1 800. ABB specializes in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs about 145,000 people.
Source: Capital (07.12.2012)