LAST MINUTE Vinci-Aktor quits the project to build the Comarnic-Braşov highway

Yesterday at 17.30, the Ministry of Transports announced that Vinci-Aktor, which was supposed to build the Comarnic-Braşov highway in exchange for 1.2 million Euros, unilaterally terminated the concession contract. The notice received by the Ministry says that, according to the document signed on January 15th, either party could terminate the contract within 90 days, without being required to pay damages or compensation. The notice does not specify the reasons behind the termination of the contract.

Rumors about the fate of the contract abounded yesterday, ever since morning. Some sources say that the construction has been postponed because Vinci-Aktor failed to find financing to begin construction. Other sources claim that officials in the Ministry of Transports and those of the developer failed to reach an agreement on an appendix to the contract that was supposed to clarify some financial aspects.

Yesterday afternoon, around 16.00, the minister of Transports Radu Berceanu declined to comment on the rumors, saying he would only make a statement after talking with Vinci-Aktor officials. He said: "The contract with Vinci-Aktor was signed in January and stipulates that within 90 days the developer is expected to clarify certain technical details of the project and its financing structure, to allows us to know the total costs and whether the state can afford to meet these costs. I need to talk to the consortium to see what is their conclusion. The deadline expires in a few days".

The contract that the Ministry signed with Vinci-Aktor is the most significant concession made after the Revolution. The consortium made a tender of 1.2 billion Euros for the construction of a 55 km highway segment between Comarnic and Braşov. Over the next 25 years, the Romanian state would pay 8.4 billion Euros (aside from the expenses with the construction itself, the principal and the subordinated loan, operating and maintenance expenses, taxes and other financial expenses, inflation, etc).

Payment was supposed to begin after the completion of the project in 2014. According to schedule, 2010 was the year for the planning of the project and for securing fuding. Radu Berceanu said yesterday that he requested this addendum with clarifications because the tender made by Vinci-Aktor was made in 2008. "It is only natural to ensure we know the final costs of the project and the effective amount that the Romanian state would have to pay", Berceanu said.