The Minister of Economy rejects the “myths” related to the SAFE program: “Over 50% of the production will be in Romania”
Interim Minister of Economy, Irineu Darău, complained about the appearance of “myths” aimed at discrediting the Security Action For Europe (SAFE) military procurement programin which Romania benefits from an allocation of around 16.6 billion euros.
Minister Darău said, in the Sunday edition of Digi24's “In front of you”, that the SAFE program represents “a much cheaper capital infusion than any other kind of capital infusion”.
“I would be happy to be able to dispel some myths and I would start with the money. It has been suggested by some that we do not need this money or we are throwing it out the window for some acquisitions outside the country. First of all, SAFE is a loan with 3% interest, compared to 7% with what Romania borrows now. If we do a simplistic calculation, SAFE means 1% of the annual GDP”, he said, quoted by News.ro.
The official stated that the “location criteria” were defined and that “more than 50% of the production will be in Romania”.
“Half of this money is clearly invested directly on Romanian territory. Why not 100%? That was also the question. We cannot produce everything today and not even in four years, because today, when we speak, we do not have the capacities”, explained Irineu Darău.
Romania has the second largest allocation from SAFE
The SAFE program, in which Romania has an allocation of 16.6 billion euros, the second largest after Poland, does not involve non-reimbursable financing, but loans under favorable conditions, with an interest rate of 3% and a grace period of 10 years, which means that the first repayments will only be made from 2036.
At the end of April, the Minister of Defense, Radu Miruță, went to the Parliament to ask for approval for military purchases of 8.33 billion euros through the SAFE program.
HotNews wrote that in the area of military procurement through SAFE, the German group Rheinmetall receives the most consistent share – 5.7 billion euros. Another package of more than 1 billion euros will go to French companies such as Airbus and Thales.
