The contract for the design and execution of the last section of the Sibiu-Pitesti motorway, the Cornetu-Tigveni section (37.4 km), will be signed at the beginning of next week at the latest, transport minister Sorin Grindeanu announced, News.ro reported. According to him, this contract will be the largest ever signed by the national road company CNAIR, with a value of RON 5.32 bln (EUR 1.06 bln, VAT excluded).

Italian company Astaldi won the auction launched in September 2020 and committed to complete the construction of the section within 57 months (12 months for the design and 45 months for construction) since the contract signing, minister Grindeanu announced on May 12 this year.

The risks for delays and supplementary costs are, however, high, as the feasibility study for the section is superficial, experts warned. The same risks apply to the other important section of the Sibiu-Pitesti motorway, Boita-Cornetu, contracted by the Turkish construction company Mapa.

The appeal filed against the auction results for section Cornetu-Tigveni by other bidders was rejected by the National Complaints Resolution Council (CNSC), the minister announced on July 8.

In related news, minister Grindeanu also announced on July 26 the imminent auctioning of the contracts for the construction of the three lots of the Bacău-Pașcani motorway, 77.39-km long, with a combined value of RON 5.86 bln, VAT excluded.

iulian@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Dreamstime.com)