The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is loaning $22.4 million to the Bulgarian subsidiary of a Turkish automotive supplier so the company can expand.

Part of the loan money will also refurbish the Teklas Kaucuk Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S.'s Serbian plant, according to a press release on the EBRD website. The automotive company makes anti-vibration and fluid-circulation-system parts for auto manufacturers such as General Motors, BMW and Volvo. The company has plants in Turkey, Bulgaria, China, Mexico and Serbia, and the Bulgarian division is the company's largest, employing more than 1,800 workers.

The loan will allow the automotive supplier to build a research and development center for more technological improvements.

A new manufacturing facility will also be built to make specialty metal tubing.

“Teklas Bulgaria is an anchor for the town of Kardzhali and the country’s southern region," Larisa Manastirli, EBRD director for Bulgaria, said in the release. Its further expansion – and the EBRD’s continuous support – means economic growth and employment. We welcome in particular Teklas’s commitment to training local engineers and technicians for the new R&D center through education programs and know-how training."