Domestic courier company Roexpres has received an acquisition offer from an Austrian company, with the transaction likely to be completed towards the middle of the year.

"We received several offers, some of which were from investment funds, but the most serious one came from the Austrian company," said Dumitru Stefan, the manager and one of the two shareholders of the company.

Just like with Concorde Courier, which is currently in talks for its sale, the main reason for this decision is the need for considerable investments in the company.

"If Roexpres wants to be a significant player on this market, it will have to invest at least 1 million euros in software and in its car fleet," Dumitrescu added.

The minimum sale price of the company will be the value of its turnover. Roexpres closed last year with turnover standing at almost 4 million euros, up 15% against 2005.

"The results were triggered by the growth of the business operated by our clients, which demanded more services, as well as by the fact that we attracted new clients," Dumitrescu also stated.

The courier market grew by approximately 30% last year, which puts Roexprese growth below the marketes growth rate. However, if a company wants to grow and to maintain its position on the market, it has to make considerable investments every year. Roexpres is the fifth player on the domestic courier market, after Fan Courier, Cargus, Curiero and TCE.

Roexprese car fleet amounts to 200 vehicles, out of which the company owns 100, with the remaining 100 being rented.

"We purchase two vehicles per month, but we also need to take into account the fact that some of these vehicles are used to replace others," states Dumitru Stefan.

The company employs approximately 325 people in Bucharest and in other Romanian cities. The companyes structure will remain the same after t