Nearly 600 million euros in non-refundable EU funds are at risk of being lost forever due to incompetence, say business representatives. The Ministry of Economy is facing serious accusations from 15 large firms in the country, which have decided to draw the authority’s attention to the situation, according to the Romanian business portal money.ro.
CEMROM Câmpina, part of the Soceram-Neptun group of companies, together with 14 other Romanian companies, decided to send an open letter requesting the intervention of the country’s most important authorities: President Ilie Bolojan, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, Deputy Prime Minister Cătălin Predoiu, Minister of Economy – Bogdan Ivan, Presidents of the two chambers of Parliament – Mircea Abrudean (Senate) and Ciprian Șerban (Chamber of Deputies), President of the Competition Council – Bogdan Marius Chirițoiu. They are asked to take the necessary measures for the implementation of the Construct Plus Program and the allocation of the entire budget established by the Budget Law no. 9/2025 to the applicants who have submitted applications for the issuance of financing agreements.
The companies Abaco CPR, Lasselberger SA, X-Concrete, Energy Connect Resources, Elis Pavaje, Trutzi, Baumit Romania, Stics, Vuglerod, Diamond Quartier, Smart Bet, Max Wind Prefabricate, Beefagri Prod and M.I.S. Grup joined the CEMROM Câmpina’s application.
Construct Plus is a program that aims to financially support private investments for the production of construction materials. The total budget of the program, over a three-year period, is €596 million in non-reimbursable European funding. But the money is being blocked because of bureaucracy and incompetence on the part of some civil servants in the economy ministry.
Hence the outrage among private companies. After 20 months since the approval of the funding scheme and 12 months since the launch of the call, the Ministry of Economy has still not signed any funding agreement and has not even finalized the evaluation of the applications submitted.
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