The famous castle Loevestein guaranteed this Romanian Business Day a large influx of entrepreneurs from our country and also from Romania

This Romanian Business Day, the famous castle Loevestein guaranteed a large influx of entrepreneurs from our country and also from Romania. The professional preparation organization and the special ambiance created a good atmosphere, in short the useful was united with pleasant.
Well-known speakers from Romania had taken the trouble to highlight the opportunities offered by Romania were, consecutively

• Robert Rekkers CEO Agricover(also board member DRN),
• Radu Hanga Chairman of the Board of Bucharest Stock Exchange (BVB), Valentin Tataru Economist ING Romania,
• Gerke Witteveen CEO NN Pensii,
• Edwin Warmerdam as the Head of Tax within Forvis Mazars in Romania,
• Peter de Boer of DN Agrar IR MANAGER. investors@dn-agrar (unfortunately had to be absent for a less pleasant reason).
• And Dutch-born Pieter Helfferich of Agriprogress
• Reinder Schaap (Chairman DRN Task Force Food & Agri).

If one took the time to make contacts, one discovered quite quickly that entrepreneurs from a variety of sectors were present such as, for example, the logistics sector, IT sector Maritime and others and among them, the large number of suppliers. A highlight of the plenary part of the evening was certainly the presentation of the Romanian Business Award. One of the purposes of awarding and presenting the Romanian Business Award is to stimulate economic relations between the Netherlands and Romania. Entrepreneurs who have distinguished themselves in a special way want to be appreciated by the DRN. The most important criterion is investment in the (local) Romanian community. Examples include education, humanitarian aid, etc..because in the DRN’s vision, investments in the community are a concrete and purposeful part of corporate social responsibility. By the loudness of the applause, those present showed their agreement with the choice of: Edwin Warmerdam partner at Mazars in Romania

Mazars recently appointed Dutchman Edwin Warmerdam as a Tax partner in its tax consulting division. Warmerdam, a former partner at PwC, has lived in Romania since 1998. Edwin Warmerdam has nearly 25 years of experience in the tax and financial sector. He specializes in real estate, financial services and energy. After graduating from Haarlem University of Applied Sciences in 1991, he started his career at accounting and consulting firm PwC, within the Tax department. In the first six years he grew from Junior Consultant to Manager. In 1998 he moved to Romania and was given the task of further developing PwC Romania’s business. Warmerdam worked at the Big 4 firm for more than eight years, in his last role as partner.

Latest News

Romania has a new government again

The new cabinet was approved by 240 votes to 143. The new cabinet includes Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu and many of the former ministers and it makes a politically stable impression. The Social Democratic Party(PSD) will occupy eight ministerial posts, including those for justice, transportation, labor and defense. Most current ministers will stay on. The centrist Liberal Party(PNL) gets six cabinet positions including energy and ministries of interior and foreign affairs . The ethnic Hungarian Party UDMR gets two positions including finance . The new government must approve a calendar for new presidential elections in two rounds. The three coalition parties agreed to support a candidate to prevent the extreme right from winning. The new presidential candidate is currently Crin Antonescu a former Liberal Party leader.

New ambassador Nicolae Comănescu has arrived in The Hague

After His Excellency’s installation, he recently presented his credentials to the King, and subsequently, at the Embassy, the acquaintance of the four honorary consuls will take place, who will provide support between Romania and the Netherlands as they have indicated on the website www-consulate-romania.nl. Or to create a winning team.

Ralph Hamers of ING Bank will not face criminal charges

Honorary chairman of the Dutch Romanian Network (DRN)Ralph Hamers and former ceo of ING Bank will not be criminally prosecuted for possible errors in the big bank’s money laundering controls. After four years of investigation, the Public Prosecutor’s Office found insufficient convincing evidence for a criminal case. A protracted procedure is thus concluded. The board of the DRN knows Ralph as someone whose integrity is beyond any doubt which is in fact confirmed by the OM. A reparation or rehabilitation seems appropriate to the DRN, because this has unjustly damaged his person. The government spent years wondering if bank executives should be dealt with for failing to carry out an impracticable mandate’ And then disclosing that.

The DRN wishes you a prosperous 2025

US, China and European Union open their borders to Romania

US, China and European Union open their borders to Romania and the Netherlands and no revocation or breach of contract will be allowed Beijing has temporarily lifted visa requirements for Romanians traveling to China. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs appreciates the decision of the Chinese authorities to waive the requirement of an entry visa, for a duration of 30 days, for all Romanian citizens, holders of a simple passport, traveling to the People’s Republic of China for one day from the following purposes: business, tourism, visit or transit between Nov. 30, 2024 (00:00 a.m. Beijing time) and Dec. 31, 2025 (00:00 a.m. Beijing time), reports Agerpres. “Romanian citizens who do not meet the previously set travel requirements will still have to obtain an entry visa to the People’s Republic of China,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement sent to AGERPRES on Saturday. The MAE appreciates that the measure is likely to facilitate the mobility of Romanian citizens, increasing the scope of interpersonal contacts, the press release quoted.

Software Sector

Post Craiova – Campus HR project update

As loyal Post Craiova readers know by now, we are anything but idle in Romania. I am happy to give you an update from Craiova where we are working hard to create state-of-the-art office accommodation and workplaces for our ever-growing group of engineers. For it is quite an extraordinary story how a software company like NetRom got access to a real estate portfolio and continues to expand it to this day under its own management. First, the current state of affairs: we have approximately 16,000 m2 of office space, operational and/or under construction, on more than 3.5 hectares of our own land. The last 1,400m2 has only been completed since a few weeks and offers the most beautiful spots within our company, overlooking a large indoor garden with a (future) Koi pond. Looking back, our Campus project actually began just after NetRom started in 1999. At that time, we bought our first building, or rather an apartment, on the first floor of a four-story apartment building. We bought, because we wanted to improve the working conditions of our employees and we couldn’t work it out with the landlord. Immediately after that purchase, we renovated literally every square inch of the floor, walls and ceiling in addition to (of course) the entire electrical and plumbing systems. We grew plenty and after a year we bought the adjacent property to refurbish that too for our own use. Then the neighbors soon followed, then the neighbors of the neighbors and then again… Until finally we had four adjacent properties with a frontage length of over 150 meters. Far from ideal, by the way, because the layout was very inefficient and we were constantly struggling with leaks due to the many private apartments above us. In 2011, helped by the severe impact of the then credit crisis on the Romanian real estate market, we had the means to buy a brand new hotel-in-construction. A whopping 5,000 m2 on as much land of our own. With that, after a thorough renovation, we thought we had definitively settled our accommodation, but within three years the lack of space caught up with us. We then added a 900m2 wing, put an extra floor on the building and added a company restaurant. The biggest step came in 2017 when we had the opportunity to buy an adjacent three-hectare plot of building land. A significant investment. That plot is now two-thirds full of very modern, luxury office buildings, sports fields, a car wash and a gigantic courtyard garden. The great thing is that we manage to synchronize the growth of our software organization with the creation of the necessary workstations. We do this by building under our own management. One general contractor for the structural work and then dozens of subcontractors for the finishing touches. That has its challenges, but a lot of experience also makes it a lot of fun and gives the enormous satisfaction. Over the years, we have built up a large network of local suppliers who have only to say half a word. Here, too, it pays to invest in long-term relationships. The philosophy behind our campus-in-waiting is the idea that we want to be a good employer, where engineers like to work. We are building a stimulating environment where great achievements can be made. A place where people work hard, but where there is also room for relaxation, with gamerooms, free meals, sports fields and with unprecedented training and educational opportunities. Unburdening and relaxing sounds soft, but the logic behind it is hard. Very many of our engineers work with their whole heart and soul on projects for NetRom and for NetRom’s customers. The work ethic is huge, and so it makes sense to me that we try to facilitate employees with inspiring conditions and time-saving amenities. Perhaps partly because of this approach, the campus is proving to be a real magnet on the recruitment front. Not only do we bring in a lot of local IT talent, but we also manage to retain them for an unprecedented length of time. An average of 12 years! This continuity is very valuable, because the long-term relationships with NetRom engineers directly benefit the long-term relationships with our customers. They also stay with NetRom for an average of 11 years. Viewed properly, the ongoing expansion of our property in Romania is actually one big and successful HR project. After all, we are not project developers but a software company.

Retail Sector

Romanian watchdog approves Ahold takeover

Romania’s competition authority finally gives Ahold Delhaize the green light for its planned acquisition of the country’s Profi supermarket chain, after the watchdog expressed concerns just last summer, Romanian watchdog approved the Ahold acquisition aslog. Ahold Delhaize reported Wednesday that this cleared the final hurdle for the €1.3 billion acquisition, and that the transaction will be completed by January 2025. Initially, things seemed to be tense in August for Ahold Delhaize, which wants to tie the Profi chain with its 1,751 stores to its existing Romanian company that already has nearly 1,000 stores under the name Mega Image. The cartel watchdog said in a press release at the time that there was a risk that consumers would be worse off with this merger, and that the bargaining power of farmers and other suppliers might also deteriorate. Ahold Delhaize reported Wednesday that this clears the final hurdle for the €1.3 billion acquisition, and that the transaction will be completed in January 2025.

Agri & Food sector

DN Agrar, Romania’s largest integrated livestock company, closed the first three quarters with 9% revenue increase and 10% lower profit

DN Agrar Group (stock symbol DN), the largest integrated livestock producer in Romania, with cow’s milk production and vegetable production, recorded a turnover of 127 million lei in January-September 2024, up 9% compared to the same period last year. The momentum was driven by the larger herd size, leading to a 14% increase in the amount of milk delivered compared to 2023, as well as operational efficiency, according to a press release. Revaluation of fixed assets in DN Agrar farms Revaluation of fixed assets in DN Agrar farms and the increase in personnel costs due to the expansion of activity. In the same period, net profit fell 6% to 21 million lei. Here the dynamics came against the background of the evolution of the average milk price and the revaluation of fixed assets, company representatives write. At the end of September 2024, DN Agrar’s livestock, consisting of dairy cows and young cattle, was about 15,000 head. “Our approach to performance management focuses on strategic investments, operational efficiency and adaptability to market conditions (…) With a solid foundation, we are confident in our ability to seize new opportunities, make acquisitions and deliver maximum value to our partners,” said CEO Jan Gijsbertus de Boer. DN shares rose 1.3% today, ahead of the financial report, bringing the 2024 return to 24%. The company is 74% controlled by Dutch Advisory Group and has a capitalization of 253 million lei on the local stock exchange.

Romania was the seventh largest agricultural producer in the European Union last year

The value of the EU bloc’s agricultural production fell 1.5% in 2023, compared to 2022, to 537.1 billion euros, but Romania is among the EU countries whose value of agricultural production increased year-on-year, data published Wednesday by Eurostat show. According to Eurostat, the slight decline in 2023 comes after a 19% increase in 2022, when the value of the EU bloc’s agricultural production reached a historic maximum of 545.4 billion euros, Agepres also writes. The decline in 2023 ended an upward trend that began in 2010 and was mainly due to the fall in the volume of production (minus 2.3%), while nominal prices of agricultural goods and services rose slightly by 0.8%. Even though the value of the European Union’s agricultural production in 2023 was lower than in 2022, there were 10 member states (including Romania) where this value increased. The largest increases were recorded in Hungary (26%) and Slovakia (12%), followed by Luxembourg, France, Belgium and Romania. Just over half (51%) of the value of European agricultural production in 2023 came from agricultural crops (€273.6 billion, down 6% from 2022) and 39.9% came from the livestock sector (€214, 3 billion, up 2% from 2022). The remaining 9.2% came from agricultural services (25.4 billion euros) and indivisible non-agricultural activities (23.8 billion euros). More than half (57.8%) of the value of EU agricultural production in 2023 was realized in just four countries: France (95.8 billion euros), Germany (76.1 billion euros), Italy (73 billion euros) and Spain (65.6 billion euros). . This was followed by the Netherlands (41.5 billion euros), Poland (36.8 billion euros) and Romania (22.2 billion euros). Together, these seven member states accounted for three-quarters (76.5%) of the value of EU agricultural production in 2023. -Operating expenses amounted to 162 million lei, up 10%, influenced by the revaluation of fixed assets in DN Agrar farms and the increase in personnel costs due to the expansion of activity. In the same period, net profit fell 6% to 21 million lei. Here the dynamics came against the background of the evolution of the average milk price and the revaluation of fixed assets, company representatives write. At the end of September 2024, DN Agrar’s livestock, consisting of dairy cows and young cattle, was about 15,000 head. “Our approach to performance management focuses on strategic investments, operational efficiency and adaptability to market conditions.

Moldova – a new destination for European business

The Economic Landscape Presented at The Netherlands – Moldova Business Forum Historically, the countries Moldova and Romania are closely related and given the increasing EU support, the first Dutch pioneers settled in Moldova and also the Dutch Embassy in the capital Chisinau the economic structures between the Netherlands and Moldova. Since April 2023, the Netherlands has a new embassy in Chisinau, the capital of Eastern European Moldova. Why is precisely this country getting a new Dutch embassy? And what is involved? ‘Stability in Moldova is good for stability throughout Europe,’ says the brand-new Dutch ambassador in Chisinau, Fred Duijn. And the new Dutch embassy counts as support for EU membership for Moldova Thanks to the permanent support of President Klaus Johannis and President Maia Sandu, the former Principalities of Moldova and Wallachia seem to be growing together again. In the period from 1457-1862 they exerted a magnetic force on each other. Which is still noticeable today in language and culture.

Claim Multraship sign of malfunctioning Romania

Terneuzen-based rescue company Multraship has been waiting 20 years for payment from Romania: ‘The country fines us and gets away with it’

We remind you that on September 2, 1991, the Rostock ship, under the Ukrainian flag, ran aground and sank in the Sulina arm of the Danube, near the town of Partizani. Bringing it to the surface and clearing the navigable channel took 15 years.

Amsterdam – Dutch towing and salvage company Multraship, based in Terneuzen, has been in trouble for nearly two decades by Romania, which refuses to foot the bill for a million-dollar salvage job. “This situation has put our company at a disadvantage,” he said. Multraship, owner of a fleet of 60 vessels, was involved in the complex salvage of the Rostok wreck on the Danube in Romania in 2004. Managing director Leendert Muller, however, is still waiting for his money. And this despite the involvement of the European Investment Bank (EIB), under whose supervision the rescue work was promoted at the time.

Additional work

“A disagreement arose over the invoice for the additional work, because the bidding process did not correctly specify the conditions under which the salvage had to take place, for example the composition of the sediments in the wreck, but also the low temperatures, which affect the duration of the work. Eventually, after years of litigation, we won the case at the International Court of Arbitration in Switzerland, but we still haven’t received our money,” says Leendert Muller, director of Multraship, who was also involved last summer in the rescue of a ship carrying burned cars near Ameland. The DRN will continue to monitor that no reprehensible marchanshandling takes place which has not led to a solution so far. We remind you that in the meantime, following the publication of the article in the Dutch press, the Netherlands has authorized Romania’s accession to Schengen.

Minister Mircea Fechet announced that the first sea farms in the Black Sea will be ready by 2025

Minister Mircea Fechet announced that the first sea farms in the Black Sea will be ready by 2025, after ten perimeters of water sheen are concessioned. The delivery of fish and seafood will begin next year, and the editor of this newsletter suspects that the Urk-based company Day Sea Day (a member of the DRN), which has been based in Bucharest for many years, is following it with a special interest. The company’s leadership was spotted at the last Romanian Busines Day at Slot Loevestein; The first sea farms are being prepared in the Black Sea, and the first investors, Romanian companies, have been awarded at the public auctions held by the Romanian waters an area of 60 hectares in the maritime inland waters and the territorial sea, declared the Minister of Environment, Water and Forests, Mircea Fechet, reports Agerpres in a post on Facebook.By 20024, the first maritime farms in the Black Sea will be ready, aldús the minister. He referred in the context to ten perimeters found in the area between Mamaia and Constanţa, next to Lake Sinu, in the areas between Agigea and Eforie Nord, Venus and 2 Mai – Vama Veche, perimeters managed by the Dobrogea water basin. Administration – Coastline. “Here, over the next 20 years, at a distance of 2-3 km from the coast, both seafood and fish of high economic value, such as salmon trout, sea bass or sea bream, will be farmed,” the minister said. Fechet revealed that it was a first for Romania that the Black Sea attracted investors in aquaculture companies in the first tenders for the sheen of the water, which was at the same time an important step in the development of the “blue economy.” According to him, better use of maritime resources means “enjoying the potential of our sea at a fair cost that we can all afford. “I hope 2025 will be the year when we say ‘goodbye’ once and for all to frozen seafood, which comes from thousands of miles away, and ‘kiss the hand in front of the table!’ fish farmers who make an effort to obtain fresh products from the Black Sea.” Minister Fechet closed the message on his social media page.

Dutch and and Romanians have something in common

The Dutch and Romanians have something in common so begins the Introduction to this very special and rare book, which can be called unique without exaggeration. Pieter Jan Wolthers, the other signatory, was ambassador to Romania and Ukraine and is currently an honorary member of the Dutch Romanian Network. In general, entrepreneurs who learn about a country with which they want to do business have an advantage over their competitors. Our newsletter tries to contribute to that as well. Do not underestimate the value of this preparation!!!

The newsletter of the Dutch Romanian Network is compiled with great care. The Dutch Romanian Network cannot accept any liability for a possible inaccuracy and/or incompleteness of the information provided herein, nor can any rights be derived from the content of the newsletter. The articles do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the board.