Spanish investment and tourist service group Marina d’Or was planning to build two holiday villages in Bulgaria, the company said in a statement, as quoted by Dnevnik daily on October 24.

One of the villages would be on the Black Sea coast near Varna, and the other at the resort of Ribaritsa in the Stara Planina Mountain (the Balkan Range).

The Spaniards bought a land plot from Varna-based furniture maker Yavor, whose assets had been on sale since early 2007 when it ceased operation. The plot was 2.25 hectares and cost 12 million euro to the developers. The Bulgarian office of Marina d’Or promised to provide more information on its seaside project in November, Dnevnik said.

The second project would lead to the construction of a number of villas and blocks of flats in the village of Ribaritsa. Marina d’Or bought 4.7 hectares for the purpose, on which it would construct 700 villas and apartments. The holiday village would have a swimming pool, a fitness and spa centre and other facilities. It would be built in three stages with first one planned to be completed in May 2009.

Established in 1983, Marina d’Or arrived in Bulgaria last year when it was first seen at the 30th edition of the Tourism and Leisure Fair in Varna. Since then, the company had opened two offices – in the capital Sofia and in the second largest Bulgarian city Plovdiv. In the Balkans, it was represented also in Turkey and Romania, Dnevnik said.