The GREAT Mega Mission 2015 British business delegation with the participation of more than 50 leading companies, planning to invest in the sectors of nuclear energy, oil and gas, environment, water and public transport in Bulgaria, is on an unprecedented visit to Sofia. The delegation was organized by the government department of UK Trade & Investment, and the visit is part of the "Great Britain" campaign that aims to promote the UK as a place for business, education and entertainment.

The delegation is led by Brian Wilson, Business Ambassador of the British Prime Minister, former Minister of Energy, member of the Advisory Board of the Government and head of Celtic F.C. According to Wilson, Bulgaria was chosen to participate in the GREAT Mega Mission 2015, due to the attractive investment opportunities it offers. In the sphere of nuclear energy there are projects related to the decommissioning of 4 nuclear units in the Kozloduy nuclear power plant, totaling 500 million euro. A project for extending the operation of Units 5 and 6, totaling another 346-416 million is also expected. Nearly 554 million euro will be invested in modernization of the gas system of Bulgaria. When it came to transport infrastructure, 700 million euro from EU funds will be used for important railway projects in the period 2014-2020. There are also opportunities for construction and reconstruction of roads, such as a part of the "Struma" highway. 2 billion euro will be invested in environmental projects, too.

At the opening of the plenary session of the "GREAT Mega Mission 2015," President of Bulgaria Rossen Plevneliev talked about the economic relations between Bulgaria and the United Kingdom:

"Britain is a very important trade and economic partner of our country. Trade between the countries rises steadily each year by 10% and this is a good trend. With investments of over 2.1 billion euro the UK is the fifth largest investor in Bulgaria. We highly value all investments by the United Kingdom in Bulgaria."

Summarizing the plans of the new government of Bulgaria, the President pointed out reforms under the "Bulgaria 2020" project, and then explained why Bulgaria would become a strategic market for investors:

"The new Bulgarian government has set serious goals and has ambitions for reforms. Bulgaria has a national program for development - Bulgaria 2020. Bulgaria has its clear ambitions for structural reforms in various sectors and of course Bulgaria is a strategic location, an attractive investment destination and a very promising market..."

Tomislav Donchev, Deputy Prime Minister responsible for European Funds and economic policy, told investors that the top priority for the government was stability. He also said that Bulgaria had a number of small and medium-sized enterprises that were expecting British investors.

"There are entire clusters of small and medium enterprises that could be your partners ... The good news is that the seven operational programs of the old programming period are active and money turn into investments. The other good news is that despite some delays we have four of the operational programs for the period 2014 - 2020 approved. This opens a lot of new opportunities. "

Tomislav Donchev also pointed out that the Bulgarian market offered good opportunities for all companies active in the gas market.

English: Alexander Markov