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SEE Country Profiles APRIL
»The
North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) holds its annual summit in Romania’s capital Bucharest, at which it invites Albania and Croatia to join the Alliance. An invitation to Macedonia has been delayed until after the country resolves its name dispute with Greece. Portugal’s Sonae Sierra and Polandbased Caelum Development set up a 50/50 joint venture company to develop a 591 million euro shopping centre in Bucharest. Russia’s Mechel Steel Group wraps up a 142 million euro deal to acquire Romanian steel manufacturer Ductil Steel.
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MAY
»Romania receives three non-binding
bids for a 80.9778% stake in aircraft manufacturer Avioane Craiova - from Italy’s Alenia Aeronautica, Czech’s AERO Vodochody and Romania’s INAV S.A. JUNE
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Romania holds local elections. Opposition Social Democratic Party (PSD) wins most of the mayoral seats. Rompetrol Gas, the liquefied petroleum gas trading division of Romanian oil company Rompetrol Group, acquires a majority stake in Moldovan gas importer, wholesaler and retailer MoldInterGaz. Romania’s privatisation agency, AVAS, wraps up the sale of a 64.4% stake in power distributor Electrica Muntenia Sud to Italy’s Enel for 820 million euro.
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JULY
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Dacia starts selling its new Logan Van model, following an investment of 27 million euro. Romania selects Czech company AERO Vodochody as buyer of its majority stake in aircraft manufacturer Avioane Craiova, which offers to pay 16.3 million euro. Raiffeisen Bank Romania, Raiffeisen Bausparkasse and Schwaebisch-Hall sign an agreement to buy Romanian housing bank HVB Banca Pentru Locuinte for an undisclosed sum.
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AUGUST
»Romanian
government securities start trading on the Bucharest Stock Exchange. French insurance group Groupama
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SEE Country Profiles / Romania
wraps up the acquisition of Romanian insurer Asiban for 350 million euro.
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The European Commission suspends the payment of 28.3 million euro in EU pre-accession SAPARD aid to Romania due to deficiencies in the implementation of the programme in the country. Czech power utility group CEZ buys two wind park in Romania which it plans to develop into the largest onshore wind farm in Europe, in a project worth 1.1 billion euro.
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SEPTEMBER
»Romania’s
leading fixed-line operator RomTelecom wins a wireless licence and becomes the sixth mobile operator in the country. Romania’s Banca Comerciala Romana signs an agreement for the sale of its two insurance subsidiaries to Austria’s Vienna Insurance Group for a combined 244 million euro. Romania grants 143 million euro in state aid to U.S. Ford Motor to upgrade the company’s production facilities in the Automobile Craiova car plant.
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OCTOBER
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Romania decide to levy no tax on capital gains for 2009 to help the country’s capital market stay afloat in the spreading global financial crisis. The Romanian government sets up an energy holding company valued at between 20 and 24 billion euro to incorporate several state-owned energy producers. Romania re-launches the sale of its 80.9778% stake in aircraft manufacturer Avioane Craiova, setting November 24 as the deadline for filing final bids.
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NOVEMBER
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Romania’s central bank, BNR, raises its annual inflation forecast for 2008 from 6.6% to 6.7%. Austrian insurance group UNIQA wraps up the acquisition of 100% of Romanian insurer Unita from the Vienna Insurance Group for an undisclosed sum.
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Car manufacturer Dacia halts production for two weeks, reacting to drastic falls in car sales worldwide.
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Romania plans to start building a second pair of reactors at its sole nuclear power plant in Cernavoda in 2010-2011.
»Romania’s largest chemical fertilizer
producer Azomures decides to operate
at half capacity and dismiss 250 of its employees as of November due to low demand for its output. Nuclearelectrica, the state-owned operator of Romania’s Cernavoda nuclear plant, signs an agreement with six foreign investors to set up a company that will build a second pair of reactors at Cernavoda. French tyre maker Michelin idles two of its three Romanian factories until the end of the year due to low demand prompted by the global financial crisis.
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Chemical fertilizer producer Azomures suspends operations from early December until the middle of January next year as demand for its output dwindles. Romania holds parliamentary elections.
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DECEMBER
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The European Union allows Bulgaria and Romania to extend by one year the deadline for payments of farm aid under its SAPARD programme. The Romanian Democratic-Liberal Party, PD-L, wins most seats in each of the two chambers of the country’s parliament following the November 30 general election. Romanian government suspends its new car registration tax for one year starting December 1, in a bid to protect jobs in the country’s automotive industry. Romania receives an improved binding bid for its 64.89% stake in helicopter manufacturer IAR from Czech company Aero Vodochody. Romania extends the deadline for submission of bids for its 80.9778% stake in aircraft manufacturer Avioane Craiova by 50 days to end-January at the request of one potential bidder. Romania’s President Traian Basescu nominates Democratic-Liberal Party (PDL) leader Emil Boc new prime minister shortly after previous nominee Theodor Stolojan gives up. DB Schenker, the transportation and logistics arm of German national railway operator Deutsche Bahn, wraps up the acquisition of Romanian forwarder Romtrans. Romania’s parliament endorses a coalition cabinet proposed by Prime Minister-designate Emil Boc.
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