site.btaPresident Radev, PM Petkov Confer with European Investment Bank President Hoyer

Prime Minister Kiril Petkov met with the President of the European Investment Bank (EIB) Werner Hoyer here on Friday, the Government information service said. The sides focused on new investments in green transition, transport, energy, regional cohesion and small and medium-sized enterprises.

Cooperation in the implementation of key projects in Bulgaria should continue, contributing to higher growth and employment, Petkov and Hoyer agreed. Further partnership and EIB support for the public and private sector will lead to positive results for both Bulgaria and the region, the Prime Minister said, adding that the government is striving to improve institutional transparency and capacity. "The Recovery and Resilience Plan is a good opportunity for working together,” he said.

The green transition opportunities and tools discussed included the Modernisation Fund and the Just Transition Mechanism EIB provides to Bulgaria to structure the Decarbonisation Fund.

In 2021 the EIB Group, which is composed of the EIB and the European Investment Fund (EIF), provided loans, guarantees and undertook partnership participation in projects in Bulgaria worth EUR 948 million. Last year, the EIB extended loans of EUR 176 million to Bulgaria for sustainable infrastructure, green urban development and economic activity. The EIF committed EUR 772 million for new projects for SMEs. A total of 5,900 enterprises and 126,000 jobs benefited from the loans.

Later, President Rumen Radev and Hoyer focused on the opportunities to increase investments in innovations and high tech, the press secretariat of the head of State said.

Europe’s future belongs to innovations, which calls for more investments in the field, the sides concurred. Radev underscored Bulgaria’s potential as an active key player in the region with its IT and innovation specialists.

The considerable rise in the EIB support for Bulgarian economy last year was noted. Radev commended the bank’s beneficial cooperation with Bulgarian business, appreciating its contribution to encouraging enterprise and projects in the sphere of high tech and innovations.

Successful cooperation with Bulgaria will continue, including with projects related to the development of green economy, Hoyer was confident. He stressed the EIB support for Bulgarian companies suffering from the consequences of the pandemic, while also funding key infrastructure projects improving people’s lives last year.