Construction on Terra Centre, the first mall in Bulgaria's Gabrovo has started, local Terrachim-97 announced.

The mall would have a built-up area of nearly 16 000 sq m divided over five levels, Monitor daily said. It would have shops, supermarket, snack bars, cafes, nightclubs, bowling hall, billiard, children area, offices and a covered parking.

Terra Centre would cost 15 million leva, provided through a loan from DSK Bank. It would be located near the bus and railway station.

The mall was to be completed in April 2009. It would create 400 workplaces.

Yani Stoimenov, executive director of NAI ProCon, the company responsible for lending retail space in the mall, said that well-known investors were already interested in the mall, including in the purchase of the complex.

Mainly investment funds, looking for annual profitability of more than six per cent, were interested in the mall, he said. Terra Centre’s profitability was expected to be around nine per cent.

Terrachim manager Mihail Kostov said that the company did not plan to sell the mall yet.

The average rent in the mall would be 15 euro per sq m, the highest prices would be of 25 euro per sq m, Monitor said.