Bulgaria Absorbs Only 23 Per Cent Of Eu Preaccession Infrastructure Funds 14/03/2008
Bulgaria has absorbed about 23 per cent of the funds for infrastructure from EU's pre-accession ISPA programme. According to data published on February 19 by the Ministry of Finance, the total sum for ISPA projects is 1.5 billion euro. However, the EU, international financial institutions and Bulgaria's co-financing budget, have paid only 347 million euro so far. The Finance Ministry data, however, indicates that funds for contractual projects in 2007 have doubled. At the end of January 2007, the funds were only 34 per cent of the total volume of the programme, while the January 2008 report indicates the contracts already cover 70 per cent of ISPA scope. The greatest delay occurs in the water supply sector in Sofia, Sliven, and Kyustendil, for which no contractual funds were... more

Swiss Launches Sofiazurich Flight 11/03/2008
Swiss International Air Lines (Swiss), Switzerland's flag carrier, will launch daily flights between Sofia and Zurich on March 30. The daily flights were put on the schedule as a result of the increased commercial and leisure traffic between the two countries, the company said in a statement on March 10. The flights would be operated with an Airbus A319 aircraft and would connect Sofia to Zurich and to other destinations on Swiss' network, the company said. Both business and economy-class tickets would be offered. The daily flights will depart at 5pm from Sofia and arrive in Zurich at 6.20pm local time. The departure time from Zurich is 1pm with a local arrival time of 4.15pm. Bulgaria is experiencing economic growth that ranks well above average on a European comparison... more

Build Green Cee Conference Opens 24/04/2008
Buildings account for 37 per cent of overall energy consumption. In fact, buildings and transport collectively emit 50 per cent of overall green emissions, participants in the Building Green CEE: Energy Efficient and Ecological Design for the Region conference concluded at the opening panel on April 23. The two-day conference, ending on April 24, is taking place in Bucharest, Romania. Participants agreed that constructing "green" buildings is an essential element of an overall strategy to reduce growing energy consumption and greenhouse emissions, both identified as the main drivers of climate change. To steer changes in buildings' consumption and emissions parameters, all parties involved in the construction of the entire scope of developments must be involved, said Joanna... more