The German company Profine Energy GmbH, representatives of which visited our country in early November to explore the possibilities of launching a project in Bulgaria, has officially confirmed its interest in a large-scale investment in the construction of a floating solar park in Northwestern Bulgaria. This happened today during a meeting between the Minister of Economy and Industry Nikola Stojanov, the CEO of the “State Consolidation Company” EAD Ventsislav Dimitrov and the owner of the German company Dr. Peter Mrosik.
A statement of intent was also signed confirming the investment interest of the private company. The document does not give rise to any obligations for the State. However, it is important for the company to formalize its intentions in the most public way by specifying the potential location for its investment – on the territory of the Ogosta Reservoir.
At this time, the investment plan includes the complete repair and restoration of the dam wall of the Ogosta Reservoir and the construction of a floating solar power plant with a capacity of 500 ÷ 1500 mWp, ensuring the subsequent long-term operation, maintenance and security of the dam and the solar power plant. The investment is expected to exceed EUR 1 billion and the investor is committed to using Bulgarian contractors for the large-scale project.
Based on the officially expressed interest, a working group with the participation of the involved institutions will be formed to discuss the project plan as well as the condition of the dam. “The initial analysis highlights as a possible solution for the implementation of such a dam project the holding of a public tender in which all interested parties will be able to participate and we cannot commit to any advantage for any company,” Minister Nikola Stojanov underscored. He said that meetings with the public in the region will be launched. “Such a project has never been built in Bulgaria and we must acquaint the citizens with all aspects of its implementation. We certainly need to ensure free access for the people as well as preserve the emerging tourism around the reservoir. At the same time, this is an investment in the future, because we are talking about producing solar electricity in a completely environmentally friendly way,” said Minister Stojanov.
He stressed that at the moment everything is in the initial phase, but with today’s statement of intent, the process of studying all legal and administrative procedures for the implementation of the large-scale investment is being launched.
About the investor: this year Profine Group and Wirth Group founded Profine Energy GmbH, a joint energy service provider based in Waghäusel, Germany. Profine Group, under the brands KBE, KÖMMERLING and TROCAL, produces PVC profiles for windows and residential doors, roller shutter systems and PVC panels. The consolidated turnover of the company is over 900 million euros and the production capacity is approximately 450,000 tons of profiles per year. Separately, the Profine Group has over 3,000 employees at 29 sites in 23 countries, with a total turnover of over EUR 1 billion.