"The king of asphalt", Dorinel Umbrarescu of Bacau, is the winner of the biggest infrastructure project awarded by the Transport Ministry this year, worth 172.9m euros, not including VAT, thus outrunning foreign construction giants such as Colas (France), FCC Construction (Spain), Astaldi (Italy) or Max Boegl (Germany). The project won by Umbrarescu accounts for around 20% in the total value of the first 11 contracts tendered by the Transport Ministry in 2009. Ziarul Financiar asked the Transport Ministry for data on the biggest infrastructure projects the Government concluded in 2009 through the National Highway and National Roads of Romania Company (CNADNR).

Thus, until 2011 these are the main infrastructure projects underway, to which others with a value of below 20m euros are added. Work has started on some of these contracts, and is due to begin on others. The 11 contracts are worth 806m euros (VAT not included).

Umbrarescu, with businesses worth almost 300m euros in constructions through Spedition UMB and Tehnostrade, is one of the main winners of infrastructure contracts, being also involved in the construction of Moara Vlasiei-Ploiesti highway section (42.5 km). The consortium made up of Spedition UMB and Tehnostrade this year won four tenders for the rehabilitation of DN (national road) 12 and DN 15, in Transylvania, contracts financed by the European Investment Bank. The businessman could not be contacted for statements by edition close.

Besides Umbrarescu, the top 10 infrastructure projects awarded by the Transport Ministry this year includes PA & CO International firm, owned by Costel Casuneanu, SIRD Timisoara, controlled by Ovidiu Tender, or Straco Grup and Genesis International, controlled by Horpos family of Bucharest.

Foreign construction firms this year positioned themselves as winners of highway construction contracts, for w