State-Driven Stimulus Plan For Tractors To Increase Roman SA Headcount

Ioan Neculaie, the businessman controlling Romanian-based tractor maker Roman S.A., said that the factory"s operations would be revitalized, if the Government went through with the promised crisis containment measure to extend the State-driven stimulus plan for automobiles to tractors, too, as of next year.

He said the factory could even increase production and replace the current U650 model recently delivered to an Egyptian customer, considering that Crystal, the company that had purchased the production license for the U650, had a sales limitation to Egypt only. Neculaie further specified that a higher production capacity would also require more workers, and thus create employment opportunities for the locals.

Roman SA last week delivered the first shipment of 25 tractors to Crystal, a Romanian-based company controlled by Egyptian shareholders that has purchased the license for the 65 HP tractor model from the new owners of Tractorul SA. "They wanted exactly the same model that Tractorul SA used to produce, although we proposed certain improvements," Roman SA CEO Carol Rugacs said.

He added that Roman SA had received an order for 600 tractors to be delivered by the year-end. "The next shipment of 25 units will probably be delivered in six weeks. Then we will increase the shipments to 50 units and gradually to 100 units per month," he said. According to him, the demand for tractors on the Egyptian market stands at some 3,000 - 3,500 units per year, which Roman could fully supply in the future.

Most of the parts are manufactured by Roman SA, whereas the gearbox and subsets are made in Sfantu Gheorghe and the rims are imported. One U650 cabin-less tractor made for Egypt costs approximately 14,000 EUR.