Industrial Cluster Srednogorie is the first Bulgarian cluster with a Silver label

Submitted by Dessislava Chalamova on 05 July 2016

Industrial Cluster Srednogorie is the first Bulgarian cluster with a Silver label. The internationally recognized certificate for management and achievements of clusters is issued by the European Secretariat for Cluster Analysis following an audit of the overall activity of the cluster.

The accreditation body is created as an instrument of the European initiative for improvement, development and support of clusters and cluster policies of the European Commission. The labels as a valuation go beyond the boundaries of the European continent as well, with accreditation bodies in the USA, Canada and other countries.

The certificate of Industrial Cluster Srednogorie was presented on Wednesday (15/06/16) at a solemn ceremony in Inter Expo Center, Bulgaria to Georgi Nikolov – Chairman of the Governing Board of the cluster and Secretary General of Aurubis Bulgaria by Thomas Laemmer – Gamp, Director of the European Secretariat for Cluster Analysis.

”11 years ago, when we began to talk with the companies from the region of Srednogorie and the municipalities in the region, the term cluster had a very abstract nature. Now the cluster is an unambiguous platform, on the basis of which we can bring added value to what our enterprises are producing, and in some form share that value”, said Georgi Nikolov. ”Our cluster has always been future-oriented”, he added.

”The silver cluster is the doing not only of the cluster, but of that powerful industry, which stands behind it”, said Nikolay Minkov, Executive Director of the cluster.

Industrial Cluster Srednogorie is the largest industrial cluster in Bulgaria. The organization is formed on the initiative of the leading industrial enterprises in the field of the extraction and processing of copper and gold-bearing ores and copper concentrate: the extracting enterprises – ”Asarel Medet”, ”Dundee Precious Metals Chelopech”, ”Ellatzite Med” and the metallurgical ”Aurubis Bulgaria”.

Today the cluster incorporates not only large, but also small and medium enterprises and leading Scientific-educational institutions such as the University of Mining and Geology ”St. Ivan Rilski” and the Technical University of Sofia.

Together the member companies generate around 6 % of the Country’s GDP.

Cluster organisation
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