Voest Alpine considers Romania for new steel plant

Voest Alpine, the largest Austrian producer in the steel industry, intends to build a massive steel plant on the Black Sea coast, with Romania earmarked as a potential destination, according to official sources. Austrian representatives met with Romanian officials at the end of last year in order to discuss the project, which requires an over 1,000 ha-plot. Voest Alpine will now consider three possible locations for the new plant- Romania, Bulgaria and Ukraine, all of which border the Black Sea. The Austrians have a strategic interest for these investments, since this would entail reductions in transport costs, particularly amid the rise in fuel prices on international markets. Among the advantages that Voest Alpine would derive from building the plant in Romania is the fact that they have already conducted significant investments on the Romanian market, which include the purchase of companies in Satu Mare and Buzau. Additionally, wage costs remain relatively low in Romania, whilst communication is easier compared with the other Slavic countries that are potential locations for the plant.