Chinese investors plan to spend about 270 million euros ($294 million) to build a cargo airport near Sofia, and develop luxury real estate to meet demand for seaside resort properties as Bulgaria’s economy picks up, an adviser to the projects said.
Investments would cover the financing to build hotels, villas, a marina port and a casino in the Thracian Cliffs golf resort on the Black Sea, said Ilian Scarlatov, a managing partner at Mane Capital AD in Sofia, which is advising the deals.
One Chinese group plans to set up a special-purpose company to raise the capital of Thracian Cliffs Golf and Spa Resort AD by 204 million euros, Scarlatov said. That will enable it to build a seven-star Chedi Hotel and Villas, a 100-berth marina port with an adjacent village and a casino hotel in the next four years, he said.
China, which now accounts for about 15 percent of global output and helped propel the world out of recession in 2009, is seeking to expand its interests overseas. President Xi Jinping is promoting an ambitious plan to build roads, railways, pipelines and ports from Xian to Athens, known as the New Silk Road program. Foreign investment in Bulgaria amounted to 1.5 billion euros in January-November 2015. Leisure businesses in Bulgaria, where tourism accounts for 11 percent of economic output, look to Asian markets to attract affluent tourists.
Information source: www.bloomberg.com