In line with its policy to strengthen competitive, innovative and export-oriented local companies the EBRD is extending a loan of up to €3 million to Bulgaria’s Biomashin, a manufacturer specialised in the design and production of technological equipment for the food-processing, pharmaceutical and chemical industries.
The EBRD funds will be used for the purchase of new high-precision equipment which will significantly increase efficiency by reducing production costs and the time required to fulfil orders. Biomashin, located in the city of Plovdiv and currently employing 200 people, operates on a per order basis to meet customer demands in the most flexible and cost-effective way.
The new equipment will be backed by an integrated Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system. In total, the company anticipates a production increase of 25 per cent, the majority of which will be exported. Part of the EBRD loan will therefore be used as working capital to expand and diversify the company’s customer base.
Biomashin currently exports more than 80 per cent of its production (2011: 83 per cent) to more than 15 countries including throughout the European Union, Russia, India, Turkey and the Middle East, taking advantage of the company’s geographical position. Biomashin produces storage tanks for food, beverages, pharmaceuticals and chemicals; tube-in-tube heat-exchangers made of stainless steel; apparatuses; pressure equipment and containers.
The EBRD loan to Biomashin is being arranged under the EBRD–Italy Local Enterprise Facility, an investment instrument providing long-term financing to small and medium-sized enterprises in the Western Balkans, Turkey and the SEMED region (Egypt, Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia). It provides a wide range of flexible financial products to companies, whose needs are not sufficiently addressed by existing financing sources.
Daniel Berg, EBRD Director for Bulgaria, said: “We are proud to support Biomashin and see our investment as a demonstration of our confidence in the company. We are impressed how the company is successfully competing on the international market with its range of high-quality products offered at a competitive cost. The EBRD funding will allow the company to expand and diversify its activities further.”
Angel Dzhumerov, Executive Director of Biomashin, added “We are pleased by the financial support by the EBRD as we see this as an appraisal of our vision for the company’s development. The cooperation with the EBRD will definitely add value to our undertakings. The investment will enable us to enter new markets, increase market shares and strengthen competitiveness further”.
Since the beginning of its operations in Bulgaria, the EBRD has committed over €2.6 billion in 220 projects in various sectors of the economy, mobilising additional investment in excess of €6 billion.
In the agribusiness sector alone, the EBRD’s net cumulative commitments since 1991 have exceeded €7 billion in over 450 projects in its region of operations.
