Bulgaria Attracts Three Times More EU Infrastructure Funds Than Romania

05.18.2011 ZF English

Romania managed to attract 1% of the European funds available for the Transport Ministry by the end of last year, namely EUR 47 million, while in Bulgaria the absorption rate had reached 7%, or EUR114 million. Romania, however, has EUR5.6 billion available from 2007 until 2013, while Bulgaria has EUR1.8 billion available.

The nearly EUR150 million overall amount paid by Brussels so far to Romania and Bulgaria for European infrastructure projects only covers contracts to design and conduct additional surveys for the big infrastructure works of the two countries, says Dragos Paslaru, general manager of GEA Strategy&Consulting.

'We are not going well, but on the other hand if we implement the projects put up for tender by the Transport Ministry this year we will be able to increase the rate of absorption to 40%-50%," Paslaru explains.

A month ago, the Transport Ministry awarded contracts for the construction of 183 kilometers of highway, which are set to be built with around EUR1 billion worth of European funds.

Bulgaria fares better than Romania both in terms of the absorption rate and in terms of payments, which are 2.5 times higher than those made to Romania.