The government intends to declare the Sibiu-Pitești Highway a major project of national importance in order to be able to continue work on sections that pass through protected natural areas.
The decision would allow expropriations and deforestation in the Cozia National Park and the Natura 2000 sites of Cozia and Cozia-Buila-Vânturarița, where approximately 13 hectares of land are needed for slope stabilization and infrastructure construction, as announced by Profit.
The government argues that, without these derogations, Romania risks losing the non-reimbursable funding of 17 billion lei destined for sections 2 and 3 of the highway, located in environmentally restricted areas. At the same time, the state would be obligated to pay compensation to the contractors for contract termination.
The project, the most important section of the European corridor "Transcarpathians," has an estimated total value of 5.5 billion euros.
In the explanatory note, the government states that the legislation "does not have an impact on the environment," even though the main purpose is to obtain environmental derogations. It is possible that the wording may be a drafting error, which could be corrected before official adoption, possibly after consulting with civil society, notes the cited source.
Connection to Western Europe
The Sibiu-Pitești Highway, with a total length of 123 kilometers, includes nine tunnels, two wildlife crossings, viaducts, and bridges over the Olt River and other watercourses. Sections 1 and 5 are already open to traffic, while section 4 is 85% complete.
Recently, Romania has contracted a loan of 500 million euros from the European Investment Bank to cover the budgetary contribution, with a similar second loan expected to be contracted next year.
The highway is part of the European Rhine-Danube corridor, connecting the port of Constanța to the western border, and is considered essential for Romania's and the European Union's economic connectivity. The proposed derogations would allow work to continue in areas where current legislation prohibits construction, except for those related to national security or disaster prevention.