GRUIA STOICA, the Romanian who managed to value a country

Owner of  Grampet – Grup Feroviar Roman Group, businessman GRUIA STOICA, has achieved the performance of being the only private railway operator of what is to become the Silk Road on railroad. All other countries participating in this project are represented by governments. How did one man manage to be worth as much as one country? A few answers in Q Magazine.

Read: The speach of a Romanian who didn’t speak before the European Parliament

• Oana Gheorghiu anunță care sunt primele companii de stat ce vor fi restructurate, lichidate…vândute. PSD: Atentat la siguranța națională a statului român
• Ficțiunea sancțiunilor: Europa continuă să cumpere gaz rusesc
• Inflație fără precedent de interviuri ale judecătorilor CCR. Oare ce îi sperie?
• Ilie Bolojan pune presiune pe români. Guvernul a adoptat o nouă măsură menită să-i facă de râs public
• Procurorul Emilian Eva încearcă să scape de condamnarea pentru luare de mită

THE ROAD OF 70 COUNTRIES

What does the reactivation of The Silk Road by the middle corridor mean?

The new silk of road is one of the most important transportation and infrastructure projects in history. It connects nearly 70 countries, representing approximately a third of global GDP and 60% of world population. Announced for the first time five years ago, this project aims to connect the African, Asian and European continents by an efficient network of harbors, railroads, road infrastructure, and industrial parks. In 2017, China’s president, Xi Jinping, reactivated the One Belt, One Road Initiative – the New Silk Road, at a summit in Beijing, when leaders from 29 countries participated. On this occasion, he underlined the massive commitment that his country bears towards this initiative, announcing investments and financing of nearly 2,000 billion dollars. The Chinese state undertook massive investments in this project, both directly, as well as by financing the projects assigned by countries joining the initiative. Thus, when re-launching (in 2017), 1,000 billion dollars-worth of projects were already ongoing and China’s Development Bank had planned another 900 billion dollars in financing for other 900 projects.

Therefore, new commercial, infrastructure and energy connections are being created, which will generate sustainable opportunities for economic and social development in all countries involved.

Read: A political testament

How did you negotiate the group’s entry in this project?

The joining procedure was a complex one,  discussions extended for more than one year, because we had to comply with the requests of all three governments involved in this project. Also, we were audited by a team of specialists from Trans-Caspian.

Which countries are involved and what are the expected investments?

The Trans-Caspian International Transporte Route – TITR Association is a project initiated by the governments of China, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan for the developing a new multimodal transportation corridor linking Asia to Europe, within the mega-project One Belt, One Road.

What role is designated for our country in this project?

Romania has a strategic position on the Silk Road, and the participation of the Romanian Grampet Group – Grup Feroviar Roman to Trans-Caspian is a confirmation that we have privately owned companies capable to participate in complex international projects. This alliance may turn Romania into a logistics platform for Europe and Asia – a true Eastern Gate of the European community for the Middle and Far East”. We estimate that Romania may generate this way nearly 100,000 new jobs and over one billion Euro in state income.

Which criteria contributed to choosing the GRAMPET group as partner in the project?

Nearly 20 years ago, when we started, we had a stated objective to one day connect the Atlantic Ocean, through the North Sea, to the Pacific Ocean, through the South China Sea. Meanwhile, we became the largest railway group and private logistics operator in Romania and South-Eastern Europe, with a park of nearly 20,000 wagons and 400 locomotives.

GFR (Grup Feroviar Roman) is the largest private railway operator in Romania, having a total market share of approximately 30% and a strategic position in key industries such as Oil & Gas, Constructions or Agriculture. Furthermore, 20% of its transport activities are international. The operator has signed agreements with sister-companies within the group, as well as with state-owned and private railway operators in Hungary, Bulgaria, Moldavia, Serbia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Croatia, Poland, Austria, Germany and recently, Greece. At the same time, the 16 companies group structure strategically covers the whole chain of solutions and railway transport products, offering customers an integrated experience at the highest level of competency: freight transport services, constructions, repairs and upgrading of rolling stock, spare parts manufacturing, renting the rolling stock, transshipment, logistics services, as well as innovating IT solutions for the railway operators.

BUCHAREST MIGHT BECOME A HUB

For what volume of goods is the project’s infrastructure being prepared?

According to the TITR estimates, the commercial value on the Trans-Caspian route will reach 900 billion dollars by 2020. This number matches a transport volume of 300,000 TEU (20-foot equivalent units).

What are/will be the main hubs within the project and what logistics will they have?

The international Trans-Caspian Transpoirt route starts from South-East Asia and China, goes across Kazakhstan, the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Ukraine and Europe.

The Hubs on this route will be the main railway or harbor junctions in these countries– Aktau and Quryq (Kazakhstan), Baku/ Alyat (Azerbaijan), Tbilisi and Batumi (Georgia), Kars, Mersin, Samsun and Istanbul (Turkey), Vadul Siret and Constanta Harbor (Romania), Kiev and Chernomorsk (Ukraine).

In addition to the current hubs, we intend to add shortly Bucharest as well as Budapest, Belgrade, Sofia, and Vienna in the medium term.

What kind of goods are taken into consideration for transport on this corridor?

The commercial activity targets the transportation of containers, oil products, cereals and agricultural products, chemicals, ferrous and non-ferrous metals, chemical and mineral fertilizers, sulphur, construction materials, other types of goods.

How much of the goods transport will be fulfilled by the corridor, relative to waterborne and airborne?

The european development of the corridor is in its beginnings. Based on our estimates, this route will be used for high value goods which have a sensitive transit time. Since costs on this corridor are greater than those waterborne, they must compensate by significantly reducing transit time. Now we are working together with our partners to find logistics solutions that will allow us to minimize such transit time.

Starting from Constanta harbor, as a main local hub, what connections are made by means of Grampet group?

Joinin the Trans Caspian Route will lead to the development of inter-modal traffic both in Romania, as well as in neighboring countries. This way a new route China-European Union is completed, since the railway operators within the group are connecting five countries of the community (Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, Croatia and Austria).

I AM CONFIDENT THAT THE AUTHORITIES WILL UNDERSTAND THIS OPPORTUNITY

How do you see yourself within this project, considering the fact that you are the only private partner? I know that all other countries are represented only by state owned companies.

To us, participating to the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route represents first and foremost an acknowledgement of the leadership position that Grampet Group – Grup Feroviar Roman has within the European railway freight transport industry. It is a strategic partnership involving opportunities, as well as responsibilities. Also, this participation is a milestone for Romania’s relations with the Chinese government and its partners for the New Silk Road. I am confident that the authorities understand the economic influences this project may have, since it really places us on the commercial map of three continents. As a country, we must show that we are a trustworthy partner, and that we reach the performance level such an alliance requires. And to use this opportunity for consolidating our strategic position within the global economic ecosystem.

Have you taken into consideration extending the collaboration with the industry of wagons construction in Romania?

One of the companies within the Grampet group, namely REVA Simeria, has already started the tank wagons construction and, of course, we are opened to produce other types of wagons on demand on the market.

What else should be developed on a national scale? Do you have government support, any common project with the government, etc.?

Right now, the Achilles heel in the transport railway industry is the poorly developed infrastructure, due to limited investments and insufficient maintenance work. This leads to an extremely low transport speed when compared to other countries in the region, high operating costs and substantial losses for specific operators, and implicitly, for their direct customers. We know that authorities are aware of the problem and that they understand the urgency of the situation. The railway transport industry plays a strategic role within the global economy system, as was insisted upon by the One Road One Belt Initiative, as well as by the European Union’s 2050 Rail Strategy.

Despite the general pessimism, I am being optimistic. After all, everything I have accomplished as a business man was due to my perseverance and the belief that hard work has never betrayed anyone.

Do you have any complaints when it comes to the state’s attitude towards you, as a business man?

Like so many of these cases in Romania, every real story is a never-ending story. There are infinite shades of grey where situations are complex. However, in the business world real answers are always black and white. And this is exactly what we expect.