Jakarta. Bulgarian ports can become a hub that connects Indonesian goods with non-traditional European markets which hold trade potential worth billions of dollars, according to an Indonesian diplomat.

Bulgaria is home to the ports of Burgas and Varna. Both seaports, which lie on Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast, are rivaling to be the country’s main port. 

Iwan Bogananta -- the Indonesian ambassador to Bulgaria -- said recently these ports could help Indonesian goods make their way to European markets other than Jakarta’s usual destinations (e.g. France or Germany). Iwan admitted that Bulgaria -- which is home to just over 7 million people or less than that of Jakarta -- might not seem like a huge market from a business perspective.

“But we believe that it can provide market access to Europe and its surrounding regions,” Iwan told the Jakarta Globe in a recent written interview.

“The [Burgas and Varna] ports hold a large capacity to accept goods entering from many parts of the world. So infrastructure-wise, Bulgaria can become a hub. Bulgaria is a member of the European Union [EU], so any goods entering the country will have to comply with the bloc’s standards. So let’s put it this way: goods entering Bulgaria will not encounter any problem if they wish to be ‘re-exported’ to other European countries,” Iwan said.

According to Iwan, the non-traditional market in Central and Eastern Europe as well as the Balkans still hold huge untapped potential. The term ‘Central and Eastern Europe’ includes countries such as Georgia, and Ukraine, among others. This region holds a trade potential of over $2 billion, which Indonesian goods can try to penetrate via Bulgaria, particularly through the ports of Burgas and Varna, according to Iwan. Jakarta can also try unlocking the $2 billion opportunity through Albania’s largest port, Durrës.

“We can even turn Albania into a trade hub by making use of the Durrës port,” Iwan, whose ambassadorial post also encompasses Albania, said.

Indonesia-Bulgaria trade amounted to $625.5 million in January-November 2023. This marks a 70.94 percent increase from $365.9 million recorded over the same period in the previous year, according to the Trade Ministry. 

Iwan named processed food among the industries that could make use of Bulgaria as a hub.

The diplomat told the Globe many Bulgarian food-processing companies did not only serve its domestic market, but they would also export to other European countries and even the Middle East and Africa.

“I have met some [Bulgarian] food processing companies. Most of them said they really needed food ingredients, including coconut flour, vegetable shortening, and coconut milk, among others, for their production needs,” Iwan said.

Indonesia has recorded several huge orders from Bulgaria firms in recent years. As a case in point, Bulgarian food ingredient supplier P.I.C. Co had agreed to buy high-desiccated coconut from the Indonesian seasoning giant Sasa. The purchase agreement was worth approximately $1.5 million.

Bulgarian food giant Bella has built a factory dedicated to the production of rendang -- an Indonesian traditional slow-cooked beef dish -- in Plovdiv. In 2023, Bella signed a four-year contract worth $34 million with Indonesian company Garuda Mitra Unggul (GMU). As part of the deal, the GMU will help supply spices for Bella’s rendang production.