To Maeg 25 bridges in Romania for 100 million

Maeg of Vazzola (Treviso), a construction company specialising in the supply and erection of steel structures (bridges, viaducts, civil and industrial works), has won orders worth EUR 120 million in Romania (EUR 100 million) and France (EUR 20 million). Maeg's founder and president, Alfeo Ortolan, anticipates this to Il Sole 24 Ore. Maeg has a turnover of approximately EUR 125 million, employs about a thousand people, both direct and indirect (in Italia and abroad), and boasts an order portfolio of around EUR 350 million, to which a further EUR 100 million could be added in the coming months, which is currently being contracted.

In Romania, Maeg will build 24 bridges along a new motorway (A1) under construction in the east of the country, the Pitesti-Sibiu, a strategic infrastructure that will connect the border with Hungary to the port of Constanza on the Black Sea. The entire project is commissioned by the National Road Infrastructure Management Company on behalf of the Romanian Ministry of Transport and is 85 per cent financed by European funds. Then there is a twenty-fifth bridge, which is part of the same order and alone is worth around EUR 25 million, representing a unique project at international level and one of the most impressive works ever built in the country: the Bear Bridge. This new bridge, the size of three football pitches, is a symbol of Romania's commitment to the protection of its natural heritage and the reference to plantigrade (in this case, brown bears) is entirely intentional.

Ortolan explains: 'This work may seem unusual for Italian culture, but in Romania it is very different. Wildlife is an important asset for the national economy, both ecologically and in terms of tourism. Our company has been entrusted with a very important task: the construction of a structure that preserves the continuity of the forest by-passing the Olt river, the new A1 motorway and the railway that cross a valley in the Carpathians. The main archway reaches a maximum span of 94 metres, supported by a structure using no less than 5,300 tonnes of steel. Maeg's founder adds: 'The bridge represents a significant investment for the country, justified by the importance of biodiversity conservation and the need to combine progress and sustainability. The delivery of the Bear Bridge will take place by the end of 2027.

In France, after completing the large EUR 67 million construction site in Paris for the pedestrian and road bridge over the 48 tracks at the Saint-Denise station, Maeg is starting new construction sites with a total value of EUR 20 million. The works have been commissioned by the municipalities of Castelfranc, Blois and Poissy and concern the construction of road bridges and walkways, both pedestrian and bicycle. Ortolan emphasises: 'These are works designed by famous architectural firms, with complex designs. In particular, in the small municipality of Castelfranc, located in the south of France, Maeg is building a road bridge over the river Lot, weighing 500 tonnes and worth EUR 3.5 million. The work includes the demolition of the old suspension bridge, which is no longer suitable for modern traffic. For this operation, the company will use an innovative system of trolleys and mobile winches, which will allow the existing bridge to be dismantled piece by piece and the new structure to be assembled with precision and safety.

Although the international projection is very strong (Maeg recently secured the roofing of the new stadium in Athens), the Veneto-based company remains firmly anchored in Italia. The founder says: 'We are investing in the construction of the group's sixth production plant in Friuli. This operation is part of our company's strategic plan, which aims to reach a turnover of 200 million within the next five years. An ambitious goal, which is based on the progressive expansion of Maeg's production capacity'.