Plovdiv Fair Soon to Extend to Sofia and Varna

Sofia News Agency

The first divisions of the International Plovdiv Fair will soon open in Sofia and Varna. Other big municipal centers are expected to follow as well.

The divisions will be built on state owned land plots, which will be deposited in the capital of the International Plovdiv Fair in order to increase the association's assets.

The announcement was made by Petar Dimitrov, Minister of the Economy and the Energy Production at the official opening ceremony of the 28th Spring Fair in Plovdiv.

991 companies from 36 countries are participating in the Fair. Bulgaria is represented by 668 companies, which is a 14% increase compared to the Spring Fair in 2007.

The new Fair divisions in the other Bulgarian cities will open with the purpose to turn the Plovdiv Fair into some sort of a monitoring tool helping Bulgarian business to follow the EU trends.

The Minister did not give an exact date for the new plots inclusion in the Fair's capital and did not determine their size. He pointed out, however, that the Government has given its permission and shown its will for the project's execution.

"The new exhibit centers will be created with the joint participation of the private business in Bulgaria", Dimitrov explained.

The private shareholder in the Fair - the joint stock company of Georgi Gergov and the Plovdiv municipality "Puldin Tour Invest" will be expected to provide new investment sources.

The Minister also commented on the global mortgage crisis, pointing out that it would not slow down business development and the investment process in Bulgaria. Dimitrov assured the public that the governing Coalition would make all possible effort to keep the economic growth above 6%.