“People who were laid off will be missed especially in 2010. We require investments to operate. We have raw materials, and need orders,” they said, during the first conference within the CAMEX exhibition. Adriana Iftime, General Manager of the Ownership of Romanian Contractors (PSC), said that of the total 105,000 companies that filed for bankruptcy since the beginning of this year, 25 percent of which have activities in construction.
Cement consumption fell 30 percent year-on-year in the first six months, while exports plunged: not even one ton of cement was exported since the beginning of this year. “We fell to the 2006 level. We imported 100,000 tons of cement this year, and exported nothing,” said Ion Crangasu, Chief Executive Officer of the Employers Association in the Industry of Cement and Other Mineral Products for Construction in Romania (CIROM).
The official added that, due to the massive decline in cement demand, all producers have rescheduled their investments, which amounted to nearly €1 billion, and postponed new projects for when the market levels off. “The state should have taken urgent measures until now in terms of investments in infrastructure and new housing units,” Crangasu added.
