Sat, Nov 07 2009
Photo: Anelia Nikolova
Compared with March 2008, output in March 2009 dropped by 8.7 per cent in the euro area and by 10.5 per cent in the EU27, European statistical office Eurostat estimates.
Construction output increased by 6.3 per cent in January compared to December 2007 but it it is down 5.8 per cent on January 2007.
The budget spending is seven per cent down from 2008, meaning that the city will seek European Union funds for infrastructure projects
The large administrative centre is part of major construction works surrounding Bourgas airport that will see a new terminal, thorough reconstruction of infrastructure, the demolition of existing buildings and the construction of a new administrative centre.
Major reconstruction work to begin near southern Black Sea coast as part of plan to improve infrastructure and ease traffic flow
Sofia municipality hopes to recoup almost half of the money it plans to spend this year by privatising assets.
After being put on hold in September 2008, the refurbishment of numerous Bulgarian roads is set to start up again.
In 2009, Bourgas Airport will get the benefit of a 35 million euro package for major refurbishment and expansion, it was announced at a news conference at the airport on January 22 2009, Bulgarian-language Stroitelstvo Gradut reported.
Bulgaria is its own worst enemy in many ways. Not least the superfluous, archaic bureaucracy and the decrepit infrastructure which are the main dampeners when it comes to direct foreign investment. Massive projects and foreign capital have decreased significantly in the second half of 2008, and investment in real estate has also slumped in light of the global financial crisis but also because the Bulgarian system is very good at stopping them coming in the first place, according to official data released by the Bulgarian National Bank, BNB, as reported by Stroitelstvo Gradut.
A list of potentially "critical" sections of the highways around the country has been compiled and released to traffic police. That way snow-clearing equipment can be deployed on time and additional measures installed to "secure the safety and security of citizens", Ivan Atanasov the executive manager of the National Agency for Road Infrastructure, said.
Office rent transactions peaked at 65 000 sq m between July and September 2008, but collapsed to 10 700 sq m in Q3 2009, Forton manager Sergei Koinov said.
Most potential buyers are now opting to buy a luxury flat in the range of 120 000 to 150 000 euro or a single family home for about 500 000 euro.
About 30 000 to 35 000 people employed in the construction sector were facing redundancies in 2010, Bulgaria's Regional Development Minister Rossen Plevneliev said on October 26.
Average market prices of housing in Bulgaria dropped five per cent in July-September, measured quarter-on-quarter, the National Statistical Institute said on October 23 2009.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has released a 43.5 million euro loan to Sofia Municipality, for infrastructure projects worth 88.1 million euro in total