Prefabricate Vest’s business nears €40 mln in 2009

“The established target was met and even slightly surpassed, but we will know the exact data only after finalizing the balance sheet. According to our estimates, the AAC [Autoclaved Aerated Concrete] market will maintain 90 percent of its 2008 level, in spite of the postponement of several real estate projects,” Florin Ispas, the company’s Sales Manager, told Business Standard.

Prefabricate Vest Bucuresti began a program to expand its AAC capacities by 30 percent in 2008, to be finalized this year. A total €15-20 million will be invested in this program, which will lead to a total annual capacity of some 450,000 cubic meters. The company’s products are sold through a network of 200 distributors nationwide.

The Romanian AAC market rose 28 percent in 2007, to 2.4 million cubic meters, worth some €200 mln. Major players on the local market are Celco Constanta, Elpreco Craiova, Prefabricate Vest, Macon Deva, Simcor Oradea, and Prefab Bucuresti.

The spectacular rise registered by the construction sector in the past few years, and mainly by residential projects, has attracted numerous investors, which entered the Romanian AAC market by acquiring local players or through Greenfield investments.