The National Commission for Strategy and Forecasting (CNSP) in Romania last week has published the announcement for the design, construction and operation/exploitation works contract for Târgu Neamţ - Iaşi Highway under the PPP scheme. The estimated project investment is EUR 1 billion. 

This is the second highway auctioned by the Romanian Government after the Ploiesti-Brasov Highway. For the latest, the builder, a Chinese-Turkish consortium, has already been named earlier this year.

The Târgu Neamţ - Iaşi highway runs on the territory of Iaşi County and the total length of the route built on the highway profile will be 68 km.

In December CNSP published the grounding study for Târgu Neamţ Motorway - Iaşi. According to the document posted on the commission's website, the total cost for the 68 km stretch of Târgu Neamţ - Iaşi is estimated at 1.2 billion euros, with VAT, and the works should be completed in four years. In total, the public-private partnership would run for a period of 30 years - the first 4 years being for financial closure, design and execution, and the next 26 years for the operation.

The highway is part of Unirii Motorway, Corridor V, which is the link of Moldova with Transylvania and Europe, it is part of the East-West connection of Romania and connects to already developed motorways or in different phases of implementation. Thus, the connection between important economic centers in Moldova (Iaşi, Paşcani, Botoşani, Bacău, Suceava, Piatra Neamţ), Transylvania and further through the Borş customs, with the motorway network in Europe is being made.

The other half of Unirii Motorway, Târgu Mureş - Târgu Neamţ, was taken over by CNAIR, which launched a contract to complete the feasibility study of the mountain portion .The Târgu Mureş - Targu Neamţ - Iaşi-Ungheni Motorway, which includes the section underlying the grounding study, Târgu Neamţ - Iaşi, will cross the counties of Mureş, Harghita, Neamţ and Iaşi and will have a total length of approximately 320 km.

The deadline for submission of bids is 3 of July, 2019.