The Romanian UMB construction consortium was named the winner of the auction for the last two sections of the Buzău-Focșani Highway, part of the A7 “Moldova” Highway, with an offer of 2.8 billion lei. The same builder has already signed the contracts for the other two sections, the end lots of the Buzău – Focșani segment.
“The winner designated today for sections 2 and 3 (66.9 km) of the Buzău-Focşani Highway is the same Romanian constructor that signed the contracts for sections 1 and 4 of the same highway (Association SA&PE Construct SRL – Spedition UMB SRL – Tehnostrade SRL, n.r. ) two weeks ago. In ten days, the procedures for signing the contracts can be started, if the result of the auction will not be contested“, Transport minister Sorin Grindeanu announced on Facebook.
Section 2 (Vadu Pasii-Râmnicu Sărat) has a length of 30.8 km and a value of 1.31 billion lei (without VAT), and section 3 (Râmnicu Sărat-Mândreşti Munteni) stretches for 36.1 km and has a value of 1.46 billion lei (without VAT). The construction of both sections, financed by the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), will last 26 months, until 2025.
For section 2, the contract includes the construction of 12 bridges, among which is the Bridge over the Râmnic River and over DN22, while for section 3, the contract includes the construction of 18 bridges and a passage, including the Bridge over DJ 205R and over Râmna river. All four sections of the Buzău – Focşani Highway (Section A7) will have a total length of 82.44 km and will effectively create the first high-speed road link between Muntenia and Moldova, Grindeanu said.
A7 ”Moldova” highway has almost 440 km from Ploiesti (Dumbrava/A3) to Siret, on the border with Ukraine. From Ploiești to Pașcani (about 320 km) was caught on PNRR financing, the short-term plan devised by the EU for relaunching post-pandemic economies. Essential condition: projects to be completed by 2026.
At the moment, all sections have been auctioned (the last ones in August 2022), although for A7 they were still promised as early as 2020.
The Moldova A7 motorway is the most advanced of the major road infrastructure projects for the Moldova region and the project that should absorb the most of Romania’s PNRR allocations.
The A7 will take over traffic on the region’s busiest route, which currently runs on the DN2/E85, a national road with one lane each way and a slightly wider shoulder often used irregularly by right-hand drivers another lane of traffic. In terms of accidents, DN2/E85 is the most dangerous national road in Romania.
According to Romanian mass media, the constructor, the Association SA&PE Construct SRL – Spedition UMB SRL – Tehnostrade SRL belongs to Umbrarescu family.