The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands has the intention to make an inventory of Romanian companies interested to enter into partnerships with Dutch companies in the water sector. Such partnerships could refer to forming of consortia for complex projects (in Romania or abroad), sale of innovative Dutch products on the Romanian market, joint ventures, etc. Interested companies are invited to fill in the FORM and return it by e-mail.
Energy efficiency and renewable energy Conference Senter Novem, the Netherlands Agency for Sustainable Development and Innovation, organised in Bucharest, with the support of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, an event on Romanian-Dutch cooperation in the field of energy efficiency and renewable energy.
The conference was opened on 9 December by H.E. Mrs. Tanya van Gool, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. During the network reception the past and future energy related cooperation was celebrated.
The several working sessions organised on 10 December gathered around 190 professionals working in sustainable energy and related fields, in Romania and the Netherlands. If you are interested in the presentations please send an e-mail to bkr-ea@minbuza.nl.
Dutch bring drinking and waste water solutions to rural Romania
From 6 to 9 October, a team of Dutch experts in decentralized drinking water and waste water treatment technology will visit Giurgiu (6 October), Calarasi (7 October), Buzau (8 October), and Ilfov (9 October) counties to demonstrate how even the most remote villages and residential areas could provide their residents with clean drinking water and waste water treatment without having to rely on a connection to a distant water purification or waste water treatment plant. The Dutch experts will meet with mayors, county councils, representatives of water companies, representatives of the Ministries of Agriculture, Regional Development and Education and real estate developers.
Romania is undergoing remarkable progress with regard to the upgrading of its drinking and waste water infrastructure.The focus is however on urban areas, which means that many remote rural areas will possibly miss out on the large scale water infrastructure upgrading effort. To fill this gap, Dutch experts use this four day road show to present innovative decentralized water technology solutions for rural and residential areas.
Looking at the Romanian geography with its remote rural areas and its numerous residential real estate developments and the efforts Romania is making to provide clean water for all its citizens and treat all domestic waste water, decentralized water technology solutions are a good alternative to central solutions. Two successful Dutch pilot projects in Teleorman county and Constanta county already prove this.
The roadshow is organized by the Netherlands Water Partnership (www.nwp.nl) and the Dutch Partners for Water Program (www.partnersvoorwater.nl) in cooperation with Business Development Group (www.bdgroup) and the Royal Netherlands Embassy and made possible with the support of local county councils.
New Counselor for Economy and Trade at the Embassy in Bucharest
In June 2009, Mr. Hans Smaling took office as Economic and Trade Counselor at the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Romania. Mr. Smaling, a career diplomat, served before in Surinam, China, Saudi Arabia, Africa, Indonesia, and recently in Washington, USA. Mr. Smaling considers Romania a country in transition and a promising new member of the EU. He sees many opportunities and challenges ahead for bilateral economic cooperation, and business development, and looking forward to give his best.
Order for Faithful Service in rank of Commodore presented to Dutch Ambassador
President Traian Basescu met the Netherlands' ambassador in Bucharest Jacques Louis Werner, on a farewell visit on June, whom he granted the National Order for Faithful Service in rank of Commodore; Basescu also commended the viewpoints the Dutch Government had expressed when it came to the cooperation and justice verification mechanism for Romania. 'I want to thank you for the correct stances the Dutch Government has always taken in its relations to Romania. I have always appreciated the standpoints the Dutch Government expressed, including when it came to the cooperation and verification mechanism on justice. I thank you Mr. Ambassador, and hope you will happily remember the times when you were in office as the Netherlands' ambassador in Bucharest,' President Basescu said. The Dutch diplomat was granted the Order for his contribution to the development of the economic, the cultural and the political relations between Romania and the Netherlands, and Romania's President thanked him for the manner he served his term and for his contribution to the development of the bilateral ties.
ForMin Diaconescu meets Dutch business officials
Romanian's Foreign Minister Cristian Diaconescu on June 26 met officials of the local Dutch business environment to assess the opportunities to expand port cooperation between Romania and the Netherlands, as well as cooperation in the areas of the environment and energy. The Romanian Foreign Ministry (MAE) informs in a press release issued on June 26 that Diaconescu mentioned the fortes of political and economic cooperation between Romania and the Netherlands, which is ranked first among foreign investors in Romania. Other topics approached regarded the latest developments in Romania in relation to increasing investment attractiveness and securing the predictability of the local economic and legislative environments, the role of the business community in consolidating economic stability, particularly in the context of the ongoing economic crisis, Romania's vocation as a regional business hub, the latest developments in the European Union's eastern neighbourhood and the Black Sea zone, as well as cooperation for the promotion of projects under the EU Strategy for Danube. Attending the meeting were officials of the Haskoning, KLG, Heineken, Den Braven, ING Bank, ING Lease, Intveldmedia, KLM - Air France, Archicom and PricewaterhouseCoopers companies. The event was organised by the MAE and the Romanian-Dutch Chamber of Commerce.
Dutch Business Forum
The Dutch Business Forum organized by Business Review on June 10 brought together top-level executives, institutional and private investors. A panel including H.E. Jaap Werner, the Ambassador of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and Peter de Ruiter, partner of tax and legal services at PwC and also representing the Netherlands Romanian Chamber of Commerce, stated the challenges ahead for the Dutch business community in Romania. The event's hot topics referred to the recently restructured fiscal code, the problem of VAT refunding in Romania, the fractured link between suppliers and developers in the real estate industry, and the lack of good professional local project managers in Romania. Jaap Werner said that since 2007 the approach in choosing business partners has changed and Dutch companies operating in Romania focus on the priority sectors as infrastructure, logistic, structural funds and industrial due to availability of EU funds in these sectors. VAT refunds were also a hot issue on the discussion panel, with Pieter Wessel, Deloitte Balkans's partner on tax partner specializing in VAT, referring to "a big unwillingness" from the part of authorities involved to solve this problem in Romania. "The new fiscal code seems to surprisingly have a more pro-crisis structure," Pieter Wessel stated. The problem of delays in recovering VAT has been highlighted by Avrig 35's CFO Edwin Warmerdam. The representative described the Romanian economy as flexible, estimating that, 2009's autumn will bring a "fresh start". Avrig 35 is working on several residential, office and retail projects in Romania, of which 3 project are under construction and few others are on the planning stage. As Edwin Warmerdam stated, "the company is still building at this stage, within a very difficult business climate. The banks are not lending yet, but they are softening their approach on this matter." Source: Business Review.
Dutch expertise contributed to preparing 21 water companies in Romania for new investment projects
Within the project „Institutional strengthening of ISPA final beneficiaries in the water and wastewater sector in Romania”, 21 Regional Water Operators received technical assistance for improving their operational and financial performance and especially to increase the capacity of implementing the large infrastructure projects.
On 28 May, Ambassador Jaap Werner participated in the final conference of the project, that was executed by a consortium consisted of Louis Berger (France), BDO Conti Audit (Romania) and Royal Haskoning from the Netherlands as leader.
The speech of the Dutch vice-Minister for Transport, Public Works and Water Management, Mrs. Tineke Huizinga at the Main-Port Development Conference on HNLMS Johan de Witt, Constanta, Thursday 9 April, is available here.
Press articles on the event that took place in Constanta are available here, while pictures may be seen on the web site of the Romanian Presidency at http://www.presidency.ro/?_RID=fdet&id=2754.
Dutch Navy Fleet Visit to the Port of Constanta
From 3 till 10 April 2009 two ships of the Dutch Navy, the HNLMS Johan de Witt and the HNLMS Rotterdam, will be present in the Port of Constanta for a fleet visit. The two ships will participate in a bilateral Romanian Netherlands military exercise, ‘Cooperative Lion 2009’. Throughout the week various economic and commercial related activities will take place on the ships and in the Passengers Terminal of the harbour. The Dutch Minister of Defence and vice-Minister for Transport, Public Works and Water Management will visit Constanta and will meet with Romanian counterparts.
The visit of Dutch Minister of Defence
On the occasion of the fleet visit and the military exercise ‘Cooperative Lion 2009’ the Dutch Minister of Defence Mr. Eimert van Middelkoop will be in Constanta for an official bilateral visit. Minister van Middelkoop will have consultations with his Romanian counterpart, Mr. Mihai Stanisoara, with whom he will also attend part of the bilateral military exercise. Both ministers will also visit the Maritime and Naval exhibition where Dutch companies are able to establish contacts with Romanian shipyard directors, ship owners, Danube authorities and defence specialists. Furthermore, Minister van Middelkoop and Minister Stanisoara will be present at the VIP-cocktail on the HNLMS Johan de Witt, for which Romanian President Traian Basescu has been invited as the Guest of Honour.
The visit of vice-Minister for Transport, Public Works and Water Management
Between 7 and 9 April the Dutch vice-Minister for Transport, Public Works and Water Management, Mrs. Tineke Huizinga, will be visiting Bucharest and Constanta. The objective of her visit is to further promote the Dutch – Romanian bilateral cooperation in two strategic areas: water management and logistics & infrastructure. On 8 April Mrs. Huizinga will take part in Bucharest in a seminar between the Dutch and the Romanian authorities from the water sector and will visit a project financed by the Dutch Government in Cobadin, Constanta County. This project, amounting to 600,000 Euro, has financed the installation of a decentralised waste water treatment station based on the Dutch company’s DMT innovative Membrane BioReactor technology. In addition, on 9 April on board of the HNLMS Johan de Witt, Mrs. Huizinga will participate in the “Main-Port Development Conference- Bridging the Continental Logistics Corridor Constanta – Rotterdam” where she will give the opening speech.
Main-Port Development Conference
The development of ports and hinterland connections into Central Europe and beyond will represent the main theme of the conference organised on 9 April, which will emphasise all aspects related to the development of the continental logistics corridor between Constanta and Rotterdam. The conference will gather high level officials from Romanian public authorities, managers involved in port-, transport- and logistics industry, board members and directors from production-, assembly-, and trading companies, and directors of financing institutions. Participating in this event, representatives of the Port of Rotterdam will take the opportunity to consult with their Constanta counterparts about possible future cooperation.
The conference will be organised by a cluster of Dutch companies gathered under the European Gateways Platform (EGP). This public private partnership in the field of logistics and infrastructure, supported by the Netherlands Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Agency for International Business and Cooperation (EVD) and the Netherlands Embassy, will try to act the coming years on a strategic level in the development of Romania’s logistics and infrastructural sector and to further develop the business opportunities that will arise from the investments that will be made.
Commercial activities
Prior to the conference on 9 April EGP will organise from 5 to 9 April a trade mission in which companies active in logistics and infrastructure will take part. The programme of this mission, which will take place in Bucharest and Constanta, consists of a combination of company- and project visits, matchmaking sessions and network meetings.
The Dutch companies participating in this mission will have the opportunity to meet with representatives of Romanian public institutions and private companies in order to identify possible ways for future cooperation.
On 8 April, in Bucharest, the Rotterdam Port Promotion Council organises the “Rotterdam Business to Business Meeting”. The objective of this event is to present the commercial benefits of business relations with the Port of Rotterdam and the Rotterdam port and logistics service providers. Further development of ports, terminals and hinterland connections are to be found among the main subjects of this meeting.
The opportunity offered by the visit of the two high level officials from the Netherlands and the presence of the two ships of the Dutch Navy in Constanta will be taken by Ahoy Rotterdam to organise from 7 to 9 April the Naval & Maritime Exhibition Romania. This fair will take place in the modern Passengers’ Terminal of the Port of Constanta and is the result of close cooperation between the Dutch Navy, the Dutch Government, the Romanian ports – and Navy authorities and Ahoy Rotterdam. In addition to the opportunity to establish contacts with Romanian ship-owners and shipyards’ management, the companies participating to this exhibition will get the chance to present themselves and establish relations with Romanian defence specialists. For more information about the exhibition please visit www.navalandmaritimeexhibition.com.
Other activities
In addition to the military, economic and commercial activities, schoolchildren of Constanta have been invited by the Dutch Navy to visit the ships on 6 April. To thank the Constanta community for their hospitality, 240 schoolchildren will have the opportunity, in collaboration with the Inspectoratul Scolar Judetean Constanta, to have a guided tour on the ships. Furthermore, the Dutch Navy Brass Band will perform together with the Romanian Navy Brass Band on 8 April between 13.00 and 15.00 hrs near the Opera. The performance is free of charge. Throughout the week the Dutch Navy Band will also perform during official ceremonies.
The Dutch community in Romania will be able to visit the ship on 5 April. The visit is organised by the Dutch Association in collaboration with the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. For more information and registration, please visit www.nederland.ro. Please note that due to tight security measures registration is required.
The EVD is organising a roadshow on structural funds to Sibiu, Cluj and Bucharest from 16 - 18 March. The events aims to inform Dutch companies in Romania on financial opportunities under the Sectoral Operational Programme Economic Competitiveness and the SOP Human Resources. More information will be available soon on the EVD website.
Under the lead of the Netherlands Soil Partnership, seven Dutch companies will exhibit at the Romevirotec fair, between 1 and 4 April, 2009. The collective stand, as well as the seminars that will be organised by Dutch experts during the fair, aim at demonstrating Dutch environmental solutions, especially in the field of contaminated sites. More information can be obtained from Violeta Cozianu, bkr-ea@minbuza.nl.
The Netherlands Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality is organising a Holland Stand (including a business lounge and match-making) at the AGRARIA international agri-food fair which will take place during 6-10 May 2009 in Cluj-Napoca (www.agraria.info.ro). Interested Dutch companies have the opportunity to present their products/services, spread information materials about their companies and have talks with Romanian partners in the business lounge. More information, as well as the application form are available on www.hollandtrade.ro. Additional information can also be obtained from the Agricultural Department of the Netherlands Embassy (BKR-LNV@minbuza.nl, tel: +40 21 2315657).
Final Conference of two Water Framework Directive projects financed by the Dutch Government
On January 13th, the Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development hosted the Final Conference of the projects "Programme of Measures for the Threatened Water Bodies in Somes-Tisa Hydrographic Area” and “Measures to rehabilitate the groundwater polluted due to landfill in the Banat area”. Both projects were financed by the Government of the Netherlands, via the MATRA Pre-Accession and PPA - Environmental Facility programmes, and were executed between January 2007 and December 2008.
PRINCESS MÁXIMA ATTENDS ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION ON MICROFINANCE
Her Royal Highness Princess Máxima of the Netherlands attended on Tuesday the 25th of November a roundtable discussion on microfinance in Bucharest, Romania. Princess Máxima discussed with the participants the importance of access to financial services fot all levels of society in Romania. The meeting was organised by the Royal Bank of Scotland in Romania. Participants were key decision makers in the financial sector in Romania.
During the afternoon Princess Máxima visited the ProCredit Bank. ProCredit Bank is a bank with focus on savings, lending to small enterprises and on reponsible banking. Princess Máxima attended a meeting with pensioners about financial education and
a lesson with childeren about the role of money and banks.
Princess Máxima is member of the UN Advisors Group on Inclusive Financial Sectors. The main role of this group is to advise the United Nations system and member states on global issues relating to inclusive finance. The objective of the Advisors Group is to increase sustainable access of poor and low-income households and micro- and small entrepreneurs to a broad range of financial products and services through the development of inclusive financial sectors around the world. The Advisors Group worked with Governments, regulatory and supervisory bodies, central banks, academia and the private sector to identify and define the key issues constraining access to financial services and advised the United Nations on strategies and concrete steps that can be taken to remove these constraints. www.UNadvisorgroup.org.
Apavital, the water company of Iasi county, now has an integrated system for monitoring the quality of drinking water in various points of its distribution network, thanks to the PSO project funded by the Dutch Government. Hardware - a mobile laboratory, sensors, measuring instruments, etc. - has been delivered, but also know–how has been transferred regarding the monitoring system, processing and analysis of data, and training of the operators was ensured. By setting up a modern monitoring system, the quality of the drinking water delivered has improved, and eventual leakages can be timely diagnosed, which can lead to a reduction of the water losses and of the repair costs. On November 25 and 26, a conference was held in Iasi, for disseminating the results of the project to other water companies in Romania. The presentations can be downloaded from Apavital's website.
Corporate Social Responsibility
On 22 October, Ambassador Jaap L. Werner has presented, during the conference CSR'08 organised at Hotel Marriott, an overview of the CSR aspects of the Climate change policy in the Netherlands. In case you would like to receive a copy of the presentation you may send your request here.
Risk Mapping for Dolj County
On 2 September, the Dutch company RPS presented in Craiova the application it developed for improving the access of information on chemicals stored at large industrial sites. This information is necessary in case of emergencies such as fires or floods to allow a good response of the authorities. The application can also be a helpful tool for other organisations, such as the Environmental Protection Agencies, and for other counties. For more information, you may contact martijn.van.velthoven@rps.nl or Oscar.van.Dam@rps.nl.
The project was financed by the Dutch government programme "Partners voor Water" and includes a component for identifying sources of funding for acquiring the application.
SenterNovem's guide for energy-efficiency and renewable energy
At the request of the Dutch companies participating in the Renewables Expo, SenterNovem has put together a "wegwijzer" for financing mechanisms for energy-efficiency and renewable energy in Romania. The document is available here.
Netherlands supports Romania in improving the management of public debt
On June 9, 2008 Oxyor, the Amsterdam based financial training company, started training at the Romanian Ministry of Economy and Finance, General Department of Treasury and Public Debt. The training is the first part of a two year support program started under the Netherlands IMF/World Bank Constituency Support Facility, launched in 1997. More information is available in the following document
Weekly bulleting regarding water projects in Romania
The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Bucharest started publishing, in partnership with EVD and NWP, a weekly bulletin regarding water projects in Romania, distributed by e-mail. The material published in the bulletin is compiled on the basis of publicly available information, from various sources (the Electronic Systems for Public Acquisitions, the national press, the websites of the relevant Romanian authorities, etc.).
Those interested in receiving the bulletin are requested to contact Violeta Cozianu, at +40-21-208 6039 or bkr-ea@minbuza.nl. The latest bulletins are available at http://www.hollandtrade.ro/content.aspx?id=13.
Dutch Parliamentary Delegation visits Romania, 6 - 8 May
On May 6, a Dutch parliamentary delegation arrived in Romania for a two days working visit. The delegation was led by Mr. Harm Evert Waalkens, Chairman of the Standing Committee on European Affairs of the Netherlands House of Representatives. The Netherlands delegation consisted of representatives of the Standing Committee on European Affairs and of the Standing Committee on Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality. The Dutch Parliament attaches - in the context of the EU partnership and friendship that exists between the Netherlands and Romania - great importance to close ties with the Romanian parliament. From the perspective of an old and a new member state one can learn from each other and enhance mutual understanding. In the light of Romania's EU accession, the parliamentary delegation wanted to get an impression of the post-accession integration progress of Romania, in particular the state of play of judicial reforms, the fight against corruption and the phase-in of Romania in the Common Agricultural Policy and its cross compliance conditions. on May 6, the Dutch parliamentarians met with the President of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies, Mr Bogdan Olteanu. On the second day of the visit, the two standing comittees had separate meetings with their Romanian counterparts, i.e. the Committee on European Affairs and the Committee for Agriculture. Furthermore the Netherlands delegation had meetings with representatives of the Dutch business community in Romania and with representatives of Romanian NGO's and local authorities.
Dutch soil sector presentation seminar
Within a project financed by the Dutch Government, a seminar took place in Bucharest, between 14 and 16 May, under the motto “Towards a clean future”. Representatives of the Ministry of Public Works, Housing and the Environment of the Netherlands, of related companies and organisations, presented to the Romanian soil specialists their vast experience and expertise and had an intensive exchange of ideas regarding the soil sector and the future bilateral cooperation.
International exhibition of shipping equipment in Constanta
The 6th edition of the international shipping equipment show "Europort Romania 2008" opened on May 27 in the Mamaia resort on the Black Sea shore, with the Dutch Ambassador to Romania Jaap Werner attending the event. Participating in the exhibition due over May 27-29 there are 40 producers of ship equipment from Romania, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Finland, Poland and Italy. "This is about a specialized show to be visited by such representatives of companies in the industry: ship-owners, ship-builders or such companies rebuilding ships. The show became international after a first edition organized by the Dutch in their country," the Vice-Chairman of the Constanta Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Navigation and Agriculture (CCINA) Danut Juganaru said. There will be exhibited at the stands engines and Diesel generators, electric equipment, electronics and automatic equipment, radio-navigation systems, hydraulics, separators, cabin design projects, ventilation systems, refrigeration systems, air conditioned, different accessories and spare parts, as well as complex projects for building ships. On the occasion of the opening of the show, the Dutch Ambassador to Bucharest highlighted the good cooperation between Romania and the Netherlands in the field of shipbuilding. The "Europort Romania 2008" exhibition was organised by the Romanian Chamber of Commerce and Industry in partnership with the Ahoy-Rotterdam exhibition complex from the Netherlands and with the Libra company from Galati (eastern Romania), which is the representative company of Ahoy in Romania.
Since the closure of the NBSO office in Cluj Napoca, companies can send their questions and/or requests for assistance to the Department for Economic and Environmental Affairs of the Embassy. See Contact section.
As far as it is allowed by the capacity of the Embassy the level of service towards the business community in Cluj Napoca will be maintained. In addition, the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is taking the necessary measures needed for the opening of an Honorary Consulate in Cluj Napoca.
