The two companies interested in the contract are Impresa Pizzarotti and Impregilo, both from Italy.
CFR SA has also received offers from the consortiums Astaldi (Italy) – Dafora (Romania), FCC (Spain) – Alpine (Austria) – Azvi (Spain) – Straco (Romania), Porr Bau – Wiebe – HOCHTIEF Solution (Germany) and De Obras Y Servicios – Copasa Ortiz Construcciones Y Protectos – Contratas Y Servicios Ferroviarios (Spain).
The other bidding consortiums are Swietellsky (Austria) – Strabag (Austria) – Arcada (Romania) – Euroconstruct (Romania) and OHL/OHL ZS (Czech Republic) – Confort (Romania) – Puentes (Spain).
Construction must take no longer than 36 months after the contract is awarded; the winner must provide a warranty period of 24 months.
The project is financed from EU cohesion funds (85%) and the state budget (15%). When it is completed, passenger trains will be able to travel the segment at speeds of 160 km/h, while freight trains will be able to reach 120 km/h.
The Vintu de Jos – Coslariu line is part of the Coslariu – Simeria section of Pan-European Corridor IV (Constanta – Bucharest – Brasov – Alba Iulia – Curtici).