Talks Underway With Investors Eyeing Kremikovtzi Steel Mill 15/03/2008
Investment bank Merrill Lynch has began talks with potential investors on behalf of Pramod Mittal, the Indian owner of Bulgaria's biggest steel maker Kremikovtzi, Dnevnik daily reported on March 4. Last week, Merrill Lynch executives met metallurgical companies expressing some tentative interest in the Bulgarian mill, said the bondholder on condition of anonymity. The investment bank was drafted in by Mittal to advise on alternatives facing the embattled steel company after negotiations with Ukrainian billionaire Konstantin Zhevago collapsed. Among the options considered by Merrill Lynch is also the plant's closure, sources from the senior Kremikovtzi management confirmed. In January, former Kremikovtzi chief executive director Alexander Tomov admitted there had been talks... more

Germanwings Renews Flights To Bourgas, Varna 31/03/2008
German no-frills airline Germanwings, owned by Lufthansa, will renew flights between the Cologne-Bonn and Berlin-Schoenefeld airports in Germany to Bourgas and Varna airports in Bulgaria in May this year, according to its summer season schedule made public on its website. Flights from Bourgas to Cologne-Bonn and back would be carried out every Tuesday and Sunday, while flights between Bourgas and Berlin-Schoenefeld would be carried out on Wednesdays and Sundays. Germanwings will also fly between Varna and the two German airports on Saturdays. Tickets can already be booked through the company's website. The offer is valid throughout summer until October. Bourgas and Varna airports are operated on concession by Germany's Fraport. Germanwings operated flights to the two airports... more

Alfa Developments Acquires Landmarks Portfolio 18/03/2008
Alfa Developments, fully-owned by Bulgarian industrial group Alfa Finance Holding, has formally notified the Commission for the Protection of Competition (CPC)  of its intention to acquire 75 per cent in property developer Landmark, Alfa Finance said in a statement on March 17. The proposed deal needs CPC approval to go through. The seller is Bridgecorp, owned by Landmark managers Richard McDonald and Tanya Kosseva-Boshova, who acquired the company last year for 210 million euro in the biggest re-sale transaction on the Bulgarian real estate market. Bridgecorp's shareholders will continue to hold a 25 per cent stake. Alfa Developments is planning to expand the portfolio with new acquisitions of assets in Bulgaria and on the Balkans. “This is an acquisition of key importance for... more

Local Property Market Sways Between Britons And Russians 21/04/2008
The Russians gave an eye to Bulgarian properties and more precisely to local resorts. The British expansion of buyers that started 4-5 years ago quiets down, but it is continued by the Russians. The change of interest towards Bulgarian lands was commented by the participants in the discussion for the market of vacancy properties by the time of the press conference BalRec. The reason for the Russian interest is the deep similarity between Bulgarians and Russians - very close culture, language likeness, common history, believes Joseph Halber, managing director of ACR Hotel Experts. On the other hand Dimiter Savov, executive director of local investment fund Bulgarian Land Development (BLD), opposed to the tendency of brokers and purchasers to accentuate over Russian buyers as... more

Expats Look Abroad For Cheaper Cost Of Living 04/04/2008
The high cost of living in the UK is creating widespread disillusionment among many Britons, to the point where many are considering emigrating, a newspaper has said. A report in the Telegraph stated that many British people are thinking of packing up and leaving for another country. This was largely attributed to the current state of the UK economy, which has led to increases in the prices of groceries, fuel and other necessary expenses. People were also said to feel unhappy with their rising tax burden, with council tax in particular flagged up as a particularly unpopular charge. Therefore, many are looking to overseas property as a way of avoiding these payments and reducing their outgoings. The Telegraph commented; "It's hardly surprising many British homeowners are... more