Bechtel completes first 42 kilometers of Transylvania highway

Newsroom 07/12/2009 | 15:40

The Romanian ministry of transportation believes another 180 kilometers of highway will be finished by 2011 and that by 2012 the segments of highway connecting Brasov to Bors will be ready. The 180 kilometers include segments of the Brasov-Bors highway, also known as the Transylvania highway, as well as bypasses for Bucharest and Sibiu. Another 36 kilometers of the highway, a segment that will be connecting Suplacu de Barcau to Bors, which is in progress, should be completed next year.

The state has handed over around EUR 2.7 billion to US construction company Bechtel in the last five years for the highway, and still has to make EUR 100 million of payments to the company. The American firm is currently also working on completing the Suplacu de Barcau viaduct, which is the biggest one in the project.

The Transylvania highway should reach 415 kilometers when finished, making it the biggest infrastructure project in Europe, according to Bechtel. The US company is working on the project with its regional partner Enkat from Turkey.