Environment Ministry Invited Cypriot Owner of “Yulen” to Meeting about Ski Resort Mind the horns!

The Bulgarian Ministry of Environment and Waters (MEW) has sent during the past week an official invitation to the personal and business address of Cypriot citizen Georgios Georgiou to engage in the public discussion about the fate of the ski resort Bansko, Minister Ivelina Vasileva told Bivol.

According to official documents in the Cypriot trade register, Georgiou is the owner of offshore companies “Marengo Trading” and “T.A.K. Services”, which hold 87% of the shares of the Bansko concessionaire “Yulen”. He controls “Marengo” and “T.A.K.” through three other offshore companies: “Din Nominees”, “Duc Nominees” and “Len Secretarial”.

Ten days ago, Prime Minister Boyko Borisov stopped the discussion on the draft plan for Bansko in the Council of Ministers on the following grounds: “It is inacceptable to me to have the government linked to allegations that it is helping some oligarch. As a government we cannot afford it. ”

The draft envisaged clemency for the violations of the concessionaire “Yulen” in National Park “Pirin” and a tenfold expansion of the concession area at twice the concession fee. The Coalition “For the Nature in Bulgaria” protested against it and demanded cancellation of the concession. The Prime Minister declared that he was in favor of both – building a second cabin ski lift, but also that “we cannot afford to have Park “Pirin” perish, you know how important this is for me”.

Then MEW scheduled a new discussion for March 7 with the participation if environmentalists, representatives of the concessionaire, the ministries of economy and sports.

The initiative of the Ministry to invite the majority owner of “Yulen” Georgios Georgiou to explain their intentions for the development of the ski resort fits into the “new course” of the government for full transparency in public procurement and concessions. Earlier, at the request of the Ministry, Bivol provided updated information on the ownership of “Yulen” and addresses where Georgiou can be found.