Romania Construction Infrastructure sector: Italian companies are awarded multi-million dollar contracts

Italy has been the main investor country in Romania in terms of the number of registered companies for more than 15 years.

Infrastructure remains one of the key priorities of the Romanian PNRR (National Recovery and Resilience Plan).

The Romanian road and rail systems require massive investment, and the government plans to allocate a significant portion of Recovery Plan funds to strengthen internal connectivity.

The focus is on motorways and railway lines, but hundreds of additional projects involve provincial and local road networks.

Major infrastructure initiatives include:

• The modernization of the railway network through new routes
• Capacity upgrades at more than 110 railway stations
• The construction of over 400 km of new express roads
• Installation of electric vehicle charging stations
• Implementation of solar-powered lighting systems

Thanks to the opportunities created by European funding and the drive to modernize the infrastructure and transport networks, Romania has launched ambitious development plans that have attracted the attention of the leading names in Italian construction.

For over 21 years, the Italian companies that support Dirextra’s Placement Programme for Professional Engineers in Construction and Oil & Gas sectors have continued to secure major multi-million-euro projects in Romania — offering outstanding opportunities for young engineers.

Top Italian companies such as Pizzarotti, Webuild-Astaldi, Saipem, Salcef, Todini, Rizzani de Eccher, IRD Engineering, and many others have been operating in Romania for years, significantly contributing to the country’s infrastructure development and continuing to win new tenders across the region.

Several former Dirextra engineers, now working with leading Italian construction companies, have contributed to the development of major infrastructure projects in Romania.

Among them:

• Francesco Pio Vergura, Deputy Construction Manager at Webuild, working on the Suspension Bridge over the Danube in Brăila.
• Saverio Barbieri, Country Manager Romania, who has worked with Cosedil, Manelli, Pizzarotti and D’Agostino.
• Mariangela Bonanno, Field Engineer at Pizzarotti, currently involved in the A7 Ploiești–Buzău Highway Project.
• And many others who have built successful careers through Dirextra’s international network.

We are currently looking for Romanian engineers to be trained through the Dirextra Placement Programme and included in the workforce of our partner companies operating on infrastructure projects in Romania or Italy, where the number of ongoing projects is rapidly increasing.

Romanian engineers interested in joining Italian companies for construction projects in Italy or Romania are invited to contact us at: 📩 master@dirextra.com

Below are some of the main projects and contracts currently underway in Romania managed by our partner companies:

1. The Pizzarotti Group (80%), together with Retter Projectmanagement (20%), was awarded the contract for the construction of Lot 1 Dumbrava-Mizil of the A7 Ploiesti-Bacau Motorway in Romania. The object of the contract is the construction of works relating to the A7 motorway which will connect the city of Ploiesti to the city of Buzau, in the central-south-eastern area of Romania, approximately 60 km north of the capital Bucharest. The project, commissioned by C.N.A.I.R. - “Compania Nationala de Administrare Infrastructurii Rutiere S.A.” - has a value of approximately 300 million euros and falls within the framework of strategic infrastructure investments for the development of mobility, promoted by the European Union. https://www.pizzarotti.it/en/progetto/highway-7-ploiesti-buzau-romania-romania/
2. Pizzarotti has been awarded the construction of the A0 North Lot 1 motorway, better known as the Bucharest Centura (Bucharest ring road), a fundamental work for the mobility of the Capital, which will allow a fluidization of traffic with consequent benefits in terms of socio-environmental impacts. The value of the work is close to 170 million euros. The client is the National Society for the Administration of Road Infrastructures (Cnair). https://www.pizzarotti.it/en/progetto/a0-north-section-1-bucharest-center-romania-romania/
3. The Consortium led by Webuild, Pizzarotti and Salcef was awarded the contract. Lot 4 (Aleşd - Hungarian border section), of the Cluj-Napoca - Episcopia Bihor railway line, involves the design and implementation of the modernization and electrification works of approximately 50km of existing railway line, including the 5 stations of Tilegad, Osorhei, Oradea est, Oradea, Episcopia Bihor, in the north-west area of the country, towards the border with Hungary. The work was commissioned by CFR, the company national railway, and the contract is financed with European funds through the local PNRR, to support strategic projects for the country. The total value of the lot is approximately 490 million euros. https://www.webuildgroup.com/en/projects/ferrovie-metropolitane/ferrovia-cluj-napoca-episcopia-bihor-lotto-4/
4. Webuild was awarded the contract: Lots 2A and 2B Curtici - Simeria Frontier Line. The project involves the rehabilitation of approximately 80 kilometers of the Frontieră–Curtici–Simeria railway line, part of the Pan-European Corridor IV. The construction of 11 stations, 30 bridges and a tunnel is planned, in addition to the ERTMS signaling and telecommunications system; Lot 3: The project involves the rehabilitation of 40 km of the Frontieră–Curtici–Simeria railway line, for the stretch between Gurasada and Simeria of the 614 km–Radna–Simeria section. The construction of approximately 20 bridges, electrification, the ERTMS signaling and telecommunications system, the renovation of approximately 10 railway stations and minor works are planned. The client is CFR SA, the Romanian State Railways Company. The works are financed with EU funds as part of the POIM program for the modernization of the Curtici-Brasov-Constanta Railway Corridor IV. The overall value of Lots 1A and 2B is approximately 772 million euros and the value of Lot 3 is approximately 600 million euros.https://www.webuildgroup.com/en/projects/railways-underground/frontiera-curtici-simeria-railway-line/
5. Rizzani has been awarded the contract for the construction of the new road ring road in Craiova, the sixth largest city in Romania, to decongest heavy traffic and connect Craiova to the Calafat (DN65), Bechet (DN55) and Timisoara-Bucharest (DN5) roads. . The scope of the works involves the construction of a 10.5 km dual lane road with emergency areas, two viaducts, two equipped car parks, three roundabouts, as well as consolidation works using the most advanced techniques. Contract value 30 million euros.https://rde.it/en/projects/craiova-road-bypass/
6. Saipem has been awarded two new contracts for offshore E&C activities in Europe, specifically in Romania and Germany, for a total value of approximately 1.8 billion euros. The first contract relates to the Neptun Deep Gas Development project in Romania, in the Nero, for which the assignment procedure by OMV Petrom has been concluded. The scope of work includes the engineering, procurement, construction and installation (EPCIC) of a gas processing platform at approximately 100 meters depth, the development of three subsea fields, a 30'' gas pipeline approximately 160 km long and an associated fiber optic cable from the shallow water platform to the Romanian coast. The gas processing platform will be built in Saipem shipyards in Italy and Indonesia. https://www.saipem.com/en/media/press-releases/2023-08-03/saipem-awarded-two-new-ec-offshore-contracts-romania-and-germany