Govt. promises Comarnic-Brasov motorway in 4 years, NGO says it’s a bad joke

Romania’s Government announced that the construction of the motorway that will link capital city Bucharest with Transylvanian city Brasov, through the Carpathian mountains, will be completed within three years with a Chinese and a Turkish company under a Public-Private Partnership contract.

The authorities introduced the two companies to journalists on May 21. However, the Romanian state hasn’t signed the contract with China Communications Construction Company and Turkish group Makyol yet, Stirileprotv.ro reported.

Pro Infrastructura, a local NGO formed by infrastructure experts who monitor public projects, considers the Government’s claims as a “bad joke."

“We have not designed the route, it will destroy the Prahova Valley,” the NGO’s experts warned hinting to the environment-related problems typically faced by such large-scale projects in Romania. Designing the route and the subsequent expropriations financed from public money will also be subject to disputes, they added.

However, the Government is optimistic. It has introduced penalties in the contract (that was not yet signed), as well as bonuses of EUR 100 million per year of delay or advance against the approved term.

“The construction will begin next year, we hope in the first part of the year,” said the head of the state forecast and strategy committee Ion Ghizdeanu. It is not yet known when the contract will be signed and endorsed by the Government.

The Romanian authorities estimate the cost of the motorway at EUR 1.4 billion, out of which the Chinese-Turkish consortium will cover 75%. They will recover the money within 20 years of operation from the toll of nearly EUR 6 per 100 kilometers that the drivers will pay.

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