The construction industry is ready for a complete restoration, starting in 2021.
Major projects, such as at Elliniko, which is now in the last steps for the signing of the contract with Lamda, probably in May, and Line 4 of the Athens metro, are turning engines on. After the ten-year economic recession, which had stuck the construction industry in the country and the sharp “brake” that the coronavirus put to a number of activities, fueling the resources of the Recovery Fund, the industry seems to be able to turn the page.
The projects that are on the verge of signing, but also the ten-year plan of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport, which includes projects totaling 13 billion euros, some of which have already taken the path of the RRF, are the yeast fermenting this process. This is a package of projects, amounting to over 2 billion euros, which includes the northern part of the E65 highway, the northern Crete highway (BOAK), the upgrade of the railway network through PPP, as well as the improvement of road safety, the expansion of the Suburban Railway in West Attica, and the modernization of small regional airports. While projects that do not pass the European threshold will be funded by a mixture of other available tools.
Greek construction companies are betting a lot on the restart of the country’s economy. A challenge that is also reflected in the announcements for the financial results of the large construction firms, which also set the tone for the market.
For the GEK TERNA Group, at the date of preparation of the financial statements, signed and new contracts to be signed raised outstanding projects at the end of 2020 to 2.2 billion euros, while this is expected to approach 3 billion euros in the next period, as soon as the procedures for the assignment of important projects are completed, such as e.g. the development project of the Integrated Resort Casino in Elliniko, where TERNA will perform 100% of the required work.
In the last quarter of 2020, the Sustainable Development projects sector for MYTILINEOS, which developed from the transformation of the Integrated Projects and Infrastructure sector, began to yield positive results. Thus, the outstanding balance of projects already undertaken at the end of 2020 amounted to 1 billion euros, of which about 50% correspond to infrastructure and environmental projects. In the results of the first quarter of 2021, the Group announced that the total pipeline is now approaching 1.5 billion euros, recording an increase of 80% over the last 12 months.
Taking into account the new projects it has undertaken during the first months of 2021, the outstanding balance of the AVAX Group, which at the end of 2020 reached approximately 1 billion euros, is approaching 2 billion euros. According to the announcement for the financial results of 2020, management expects a significant increase in the volume of construction activity in the long run, thanks to the National Plan for Recovery and Sustainability for the period 2021-2026.
And the ELLAKTOR Group, which seems to be entering a trajectory of internal peace after the approval of the share capital increase, amounting to 120.5 million euros, prioritizes the restoration of stability and competitiveness of the Construction sector for 2021. The goal of management is to keep the Group among industry leaders, in the environment that will be shaped by the European funds that will flow into the domestic market.
