Aurubis Bulgaria AD (Bulgaria)

Copper smelter Aurubis Bulgaria is based some 80 kilometers north of the capital Sofia, close to the country's biggest copper mines. The company`s primary activity is copper concentrate processing for the production of copper anodes and cathodes, as well as by-products such as sulfuric acid, fayalite and middling slime. The production is organized in 4 units - Smelter, Refinery, Acid Plant and Flotation Plant.
The company was initially established in 1991 as a state-owned enterprise under the MDK name. In September 1997, Bulgaria's privatization agency sold 56% of the Pirdop copper smelter for USD 80 million to Belgium's metals group Union Miniere SA. The new owner pledged to invest USD 220 million over five years. In January 1998, Union Miniere raised its stake in the Pirdop smelter to 97.5% after buying out most of the shares on the local stock market. The plant, renamed Cumerio Med in mid-2005, raised its copper anode output by 6.0% to 240,000 tonnes in 2005 due to stable production levels.
Additionally, the company operates two plants that produce sulfuric acid as a byproduct of copper smelting in the central town of Pirdop.
In April 2008 the German copper-bearing concern Norddeutschen Affinerie AG acquired the Belgium holding Cumerio and changed name to Aurubis AG. As a result of the merger the name of the local arm of the company also was changed.