Romanian authorities terminate highway construction contracts with US company Bechtel, state will pay compensation

Romania's National Highways Authority (CNADNR) will cancel contracts with US firm Bechtel with road construction work undertaken by the company and only part finished. Bechtel has already received EUR 1.4 billion for 52km of completed highway sections and a further 60km only part done of the 412-km Transilvania highway. The Minister for Infrastructure Project and Foreign Investments Dan Şova said that all contracts with Bechtel would be terminated as of Monday (May 27), quoted by local business and financial news organization Ziarul Financiar. Bechtel will be eligible for compensation from the state for ending the contract early and although Şova indicated that an amount had been fixed, he said he could not give any further details at present. The Bechtel contract was signed in 2003 during the government of Adrian Nastase, who recently served time in jail for corruption. The deal began as a public-private partnership, but later changed to a solely state-funded project. US engineering and construction company Bechtel's portfolio includes worldwide operations in energy, transportation, communications, mining, oil and gas, and government services. Privately owned with headquarters in San Francisco, Bechtel has offices around the world and 53,000 employees. Bechtel revenues reached USD 37.9 billion in 2012, up on the USD 32.9 billion recorded in 2011. The value of new contracts won last year was however down on the previous year; from USD 53 billion in 2011 to USD 23.9 billion in 2012. editor@romania-insider.com photo source: bechtel.com