Economy minister says 2027 draft budget will set aside €135 million for industrial zones

Bulgaria's 2027 draft budget will include €135 million for the development of industrial zones, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy, Investment and Industry Alexander Poulev said in an interview with Bulgarian National Television on Saturday 31 October, BTA reported.

Poulev said the aim was a multiplier effect, with every euro invested by the state attracting between €5 and €20 of private investment. Strategic zones with high potential had been identified across the country, he said, and further details of the analyses would be presented. He described the draft as a budget that would provide all the tools needed for growth and confirmed it would be presented in early November.

Asked about new government debt to refinance existing borrowing, Poulev said this was standard practice and that Bulgaria's debt level remained low. He said he supported new debt when it was linked to reforms, such as investment in industrial zones, a better business environment and support for industry, but opposed borrowing only to plug holes and pay current wages, which he warned could lead to a debt spiral.

As chair of the Investment Screening Committee, Poulev said investment under this component had risen by 65% during the government's term. He also said Bulgarian exports had grown by 10% over the past eight months. He called the country's removal from the FATF grey list major news for investment and said it opened the way to membership of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

The timing of the budget has become a political issue. Under the Public Finance Act, the Council of Ministers must submit the state budget bill and the updated medium-term budget forecast to the National Assembly by 31 October. Prime Minister Rumen Radev, who a few days earlier had said the draft would be tabled by the end of October, told reporters on Sunday 1 November that it would be submitted in the coming days. He said the government was making great efforts to restore public finances and that the task was not easy.

For investors looking at industrial land, the details still to come will matter most: which zones are chosen, how the money is split between land, roads and utilities, and how quickly sites can be offered to tenants.