site.btaFesto Opens Its Largest Development Centre Outside Germany in Sofia

At an official ceremony on Thursday, members of the Management Board of the German company Festo and executives of its local division Festo Bulgaria opened the expanded Technical Engineering Centre in Sofia. This is the Group's largest development centre outside Germany. It was presented to the public in the year when Festo celebrated its 100th anniversary. 

Official guests at the event, which took place in the building of the capital's Inter Expo Center, were Economy and Industry Minister Petar Dilov, Germany's Ambassador to Bulgaria Irene Plank, the Head of the Economic Section at the German Embassy in Sofia, Moritz Seiler, Education and Science Ministry's Science Directorate Director Milena Damyanova, InvestBulgaria Agency Executive Director Mila Nenova, German-Bulgarian Chamber of Industry and Commerce General Manager Sonia Miklai and Mladost Borough Mayor Ivaylo Kukurin.

The company's technical engineering centre in Sofia opened in 2019. Festo Bulgaria General Manager Kalin Dobrev said that the first steps of the company's entry into the country date back to 1986. Production activities in the country began in 1990. 

At the event, it was revealed that the group's annual revenue for the 2024 financial year amounts to EUR 3.5 billion. Of this, 8.8% is allocated to research and development. The company employs 20,600 people in production and development.