The recovery of the construction sector, currently in a critical state, depends on investments, the prioritisation of projects and the improvement of the legislation, and the number of bankruptcies in the sector has shrunk lately, because “there’s no one left to go bankrupt,” Cristian Erbasu, the chairman of the Romanian Contractors’ Association (PSC), stated, yesterday, at a specialized seminar. According to the latter, what is needed, for the sector to recover, besides financing, is a very clear picture of the projects that the authorities intend to complete, Mediafax reports. Erbasu argued that, immediately after the new Labour Code had come into force, construction companies had reported inspections regarding undeclared labour, although these inspections should be regular, rather than special, actions. He added that the undeclared labour phenomenon, which has been around for many years now, could not be counteracted merely by modifying the Labour Code.
Attending the seminar, Eugen Curteanu, state secretary in the Development Ministry, presented the main programs related to the constructions market and argued there were signs of a recovery in this sector.
On the other hand, referring to the real-estate boom in Romania, Erbasu pointed out this had occurred in the absence of the utilities the new quarters would need, such as the water and sewerage system, and that, from now on, these networks should be developed first, before the homes. He further said that, at national level, infrastructure projects should be given priority, so that the real-estate sector can be developed, subsequently, in an adequate and coherent manner. At the same time, the head of the contractors’ association added that Romania still had a deficit of homes, but argued their development should be correlated with the people’s purchase power.
Cement-consumption to reach European average per capita in 2015
Cement-consumption per capita in Romania will rise in the foreseeable future and is estimated to reach the European average, of 423 kg/capita, in 2015, but it should double to bridge the gap in infrastructure between Romania and Western Europe, the chairman of the Cement Industry Employers’ Association, Mihai Rohan, stated, yesterday, during the same seminar. He added that the constructions market had slumped by 50 pc in the past two years, in the context of the crisis, and that its contribution to GDP had slumped, in turn, from over 10 pc in 2007 to under 8-9 pc last year.
