The EUR 1.1 billion contract for the construction of a beltway for the city of Cluj-Napoca in Romania was suspended and will be terminated within ten days unless the contractors settle a dispute that occurred after one of them, a company from Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), accused that their identity was stolen and fraudulently used by a third party, G4media.ro reported.

The other contractor is Romania-based Dimex 2000 Company SRL, a company active for over 20 years, with EUR 120 million turnover and RON 49 million net profit in 2024. Epochtimes-romania.com suggested that the company’s owner, Ion Scurtu – previously condemned to two years in jail for bribery and influence peddling – needed this false partner since its company was not meeting the requirements for a contract of this size. 

Integral Inzenjering (from Laktasi) claimed that it had not participated in the tender at all. 

According to the publication Capital.ba, the company's director, Maja Praštalo, claimed that her identity was fraudulently used. According to statements quoted by the Bosnian press, a person named Dragan Janošević, from Bor, Serbia, allegedly submitted false documents and a notarial power of attorney to represent Integral Inzenjering in the awarding procedure.

More precisely, the company Integral Inženjering claimed that its identity was stolen and that it did not sign any document regarding its participation in this tender. Moreover, it notified the Cluj-Napoca City Hall and the National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA) in September last year – a piece of information that was, however, kept secret.

The company claimed that the same scheme was also used in other major road infrastructure projects in Romania, including the Bacău–Piatra Neamț Express Road, the Târgoviște connecting road, the Mediaș Beltway, and the rehabilitation of the DN73C Curtea de Argeș–Tigveni. The cumulative value of these tenders reportedly exceeds EUR 3 billion.

iulian@romania-insider.com

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