US company to invest 30 million dollars in Romania

An American company will invest about 300 million dollars in the industrial equipment sector, according to a press release of the Ministry of Economy which shows that the announcement was made by the US ambassador at a meeting with the minister of economy. The minister of economy, trade and business, Adrian Videanu, met the US ambassador to Bucharest, Mark H Gitenstein on Tuesday.

"The stage of bilateral economic relations and the fields of interest for bigger US investments in Romania were analysed during talks. The US ambassador pointed out that the interest of American companies in the Romanian market was still constant. A new American company will invest about 300 million dollars in Romania in the near future in the field of industrial equipment," the press release of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Business (MECMA) shows.

Contacted by Mediafax, Adrian Videanu said that besides the company Gitenstein referred to there are several American firms which want to invest in Romania, in energy production included. The minister did not give details about the names of companies interested in investing in Romania.

In his turn Videanu presented Gitenstein the restructuring project in the field of energy in Romania by setting up the companies Hidroenergetica and Electra.

At the same time Videanu presented government actions to improve the business environment, by reducing bureaucratic procedures, setting up attractive fiscal laws as well as the wish of a growing number of American companies to invest in Romania.In January, the American group General Electric concluded with Nuclearelectrica, the operator of the only nuclear plant in Romania, an eight year contract to supply maintenance services for nuclear reactors 1 and 2 of Cernavoda nuclear plant. The accord has a value of up to 146 million dollars.

At that date Gitenstein said General electric was interested in supplying equipment for nuclear reactors 3 and 4 from Cernavoda, a project evaluated at over 4 billion dollars.At the same time, a delegation made of representatives of several American companies visited Romania last September. The US Embassy said at that time that the companies were looking for opportunities to participate in building reactors 3 and 4 at Cernavoda, as well as in building new nuclear plants in the future. These companies are AMEC, Autodesk, Babcock and Wilcox, CH2M Hill, Froehling and Robertson, Hill International, Honeywell, Mathey Dearman, NuScale Power, Trax International and Westinghouse.