Synergy Construct signs EUR 45 mln in new contracts

“Synergy had expected an increase in the market by the middle of this year. It is obvious that this forecast was not realized. The financial crisis is continuing and an emergence from it before mid-2010 does not seem feasible,” said Bicer. Workload wise, Synergy's activity has fallen by around 30 percent. However, the company has several ongoing projects, such as a factory in Urlati, Prahova, desulphurization plant civil works at Turceni-Gorj for Austrian Energy & Environment (AE&E), the Rose Garden residential project for GTC and Grigore Alexandrescu office project in Bucharest for Ester Auto Center. “Two Synergy investment projects have been put on hold due to the real estate downturn, one in Bucharest and the other in Iasi,” added Bicer. So far, Synergy has encountered delays and non-payment from only one project which was signed several years ago and completed at the beginning of 2009. However, “despite all the efforts and postponements, there have been lay-offs. The operational costs have been minimized by cost-saving methods such as restructuring the organization of the company, outsourcing some activities and moving the headquarters of the group companies to one building,” said Bicer. “Due to market conditions, the number of employees at Synergy has dropped by around 25 percent.”
Corina Saceanu