ZS Europe, part of Chinese holding Shanghai Unison Aluminium Products, opens a plant in Bulgaria. The high-tech manufacturing plant was officially inaugurated in the Trakia Economic Zone (TEZ) near Plovdiv—marking one of the most significant Chinese industrial investments in Bulgaria to date.
Backed by a Class A Investment Certificate under the Investment Promotion Act, the project is valued at nearly BGN 18.7 million (9.7 mln. Euro) and is expected to create over 100 new jobs. The newly completed production facility spans 12,000 square meters (1.2 hectares), with a second building already under construction. Once finished, the entire site will cover 3.5 hectares.
Plant to supply OEMs including Tesla, Volvo, Volkswagen, Stellantis, and Audi
ZS Europe new plant in Bulgaria will manufacture aluminum components for global automotive brands, positioning Bulgaria as an increasingly critical link in the European and global supply chains for electric and conventional vehicles..
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Innovation and Growth Tomislav Donchev inaugurated the facility, emphasizing the strategic importance of industrial development for the nation’s economic future.
“The foundation of successful economic development is industry. It allows everything else to be built — high value-added services and related productions. The road to prosperity passes through factories, not through cobblestones,” Donchev stated.
Donchev added that Bulgaria continues to integrate into global markets, with the national goal of expanding domestic production of finished goods. He highlighted the country’s network of industrial zones, noting that Plovdiv’s Trakia Economic Zone remains the largest and most established.
A strategic milestone for Bulgaria’s investment landscape
As the first major Chinese industrial investment in Bulgaria, the ZS Europe plant represents a milestone in the country’s efforts to attract technologically advanced and export-oriented manufacturing projects.
The opening ceremony was attended by a distinguished group of Bulgarian and Chinese officials, including Mila Nenova, Executive Director of the InvestBulgaria Agency (IBA), along with the IBA team that supported the project; Luo Shibing, Chairman/President of Shanghai Unison Aluminium Products Co; Eng. Plamen Panchev, Founder and CEO of Trakia Economic Zone; Kostadin Dimitrov, Mayor of Plovdiv; Vladimir Temelkov, Deputy Mayor for Digitalization, European Policies, Business Development, and Education and sdditional representatives from Chinese institutions and partner companies.
