Chinese company CBMI wins Building of Year 2014 contest in Bulgaria

A project performed by Chinese CBMI Construction Company Ltd. here on Wednesday evening won Bulgaria's "Building of the Year 2014" contest in the "Industrial buildings -- technological renovation and expansion" category.

The 30-month project, titled "Reconstruction and modernization of the installation for production of clinker and cement at Devnya Cement's plant," involved an investment of some 206 million US dollars, and nine countries including China, Bulgaria, Italy, Germany, Spain, France, Hungary, Romania and Switzerland.

The investor, "Devnya Cement" JSC, is part of Italcementi Group, which is the fifth largest cement producer in the world, operating in 22 countries and regions.

Lilyana Pavlova, Minister of Regional Development, who handed the prize to Wang Bin, General Manager of the Bulgarian branch of CBMI Construction, said the contest was an extremely spectacular, significant event.

She said she visited the newly built installation two months ago, and it is an impressive facility, an investment that is worth.

Wang told Xinhua he had to thank the 121 Bulgarian companies and 4,000 Bulgarian people who participated in the project.

"The second, I also have to thank Bulgaria's Devnya Cement plant for giving us the opportunity to build the 128-meter-high steel structural tower, which is the highest building in Bulgaria," he said.

"And not least, we are waiting to develop a longer cooperation in the Bulgarian market, and make a step further in EU market," he said.

A total of 79 buildings participated this year in the contest, launched in 2002.