Colas loses Romanian job

A contract worth € 151 million with Colas to build a stretch of motorway has been cancelled by the Romanian government, which claimed that the Bouygues subsidiary had not finalised the design for more than half the length of the road, and that there would be additional costs and a later finishing date than originally indicated.

The National Company of Motorways & National Roads in Romania (CNADNR), which operates under the Ministry of Transport & Infrastructure, is to review the project and prepare new tender documents. Transport Minister Anca Boagiu said it was estimated that a new contract and design would be signed by August, and that work would begin by the end of the year.

Colas was to have built 20,3 km of road between Cernavoda and Medgidia, but it is claimed that the design for 14 km of that was still not finalised.

Other complaints were that an extra € 16 million would be required, and that the project would take an additional 24 months. In October 2010, work on bridges and other structures was halted by the State Construction Inspectorate, claiming a failure in construction quality.

The Minister said she hoped the decision this week with Colas would be an example for all manufacturers and consultants who wanted to work with the Romanian government. She said they needed to understand that Romania was no longer a "no-man's-land" where manufacturers were free not to honour their contractual duties.

She said that when companies completed the tendering procedures for EU-funded highway corridor IV, they were welcome to work in Romania as long as they worked on time and to normal costs.

Colas said this week that it did not have any comment to make on the project.