As Nokia announced the closure of its plant in Jucu, Cluj county on Thursday, four years after its arrival in Romania, a three-party contract on the Jucu factory signed by Cluj county authorities, Nokia and the Tetarom industrial park remains secret. That comes against Romanian legislation and despite calls that the contract be made public. HotNews.ro first demanded the disclosure of the contract as early as 2007, but without results.
Romanian media including HotNews.ro have been demanding the disclosure of the still secret contract over the Nokia plant in Cluj county as it involves public investments amounting to over 30 mln. euro in addition to the land in Jucu, where the factory is based. Additionally, there is no info on guarantees that Romanian authorities might have demanded to secure its investments.
Thursday, September 29, HotNews.ro once again demanded Cluj County Council to disclose the contract. The first official demand by HotNews.ro in this regard dates as early as 2007, but the then-head of the Cluj County Council, Marius Nicoara, refused to reveal the provisions of the contract.
The stake of the Nokia business in Jucu revolves around assistance provided by the Romanian state to the Finnish company, as a HotNews.ro investigative report in 2007 revealed. Statements by the officials who backed the investment at the time - Cluj County Council head Marius Nicoara and then-PM Calin Popescu Tariceanu - showed that:
total investments amounted to over 30 million euroNokia promised investments of over 60 million euroNokia received from the Romanian state the right of free use of 160 ha of land in Jucu (90 hectares for Nokia, the rest for parts providers)Nokia might buy the land if interested once 15% of the investment is doneThe Romanian part covers infrastructure costs
Since then, the secrecy over the contract has determine
