Strategic Partnership Between Rail Port Arad and Curtici-Arad Free Zone: The Two Logistics Platforms Join Forces to Attract International Investments to Arad County

Two of the county's most important logistics platforms choose to join their resources and international relations to transform Curtici from a strategic transit point into an increasingly strong center for economic development, investment, and international trade.

The largest inland intermodal terminal in Romania, Rail Port Arad, and the only free zone in the western part of the country, Curtici-Arad Free Zone, signed today a strategic collaboration protocol through which the two entities will mutually support and represent their interests in international economic relations.

The document was signed at the headquarters of Rail Port Arad in Curtici by Wágner István, General Manager of the company, and Romulus Tănăsescu, General Manager of the Curtici-Arad Free Zone Administration, in the presence of the President of the Arad County Council, Iustin Cionca, and the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Curtici-Arad Free Zone, Dr. Andrei Ando, who serves as the representative of the tutelary authority on the Board of Directors.

The protocol aims to strengthen collaboration between two economic structures that play an essential role in the development of Arad County by mutually promoting their services, identifying new business opportunities, and establishing joint representation on international markets. The first concrete results of this collaboration are already set: Curtici-Arad Free Zone will be represented in Kazakhstan during business meetings organized by Rail Port Arad, while Rail Port Arad will be represented in China at economic meetings conducted by the Free Zone delegation.

The President of the Arad County Council, Iustin Cionca, highlighted the strategic importance of the partnership in consolidating Arad County's position on Europe's logistics map.

“Curtici, well managed by Mayor Bogdan Ban, currently holds an economic potential that few cities of its size possess in Romania. Here operate the country's largest inland intermodal terminal and one of the most important free zones—two structures that, through their operations, connect the local economy to international trade flows. The signing of this protocol represents a natural yet very important step. Instead of promoting themselves separately, the two entities are pooling their relationships, experience, and development opportunities. For us at the County Council, the objective is for Arad to become increasingly attractive for investments, generate new jobs, and strengthen its role as Romania's economic gateway to Central and Western Europe,” stated Iustin Cionca.

The two partner entities have evolved in parallel, contributing to the transformation of Curtici into a benchmark logistic and industrial hub. Curtici-Arad Free Zone was established in 1999, and Rail Port Arad began its operations in 2009. Throughout their 27 and 17 years of existence respectively, both structures have developed complementary services and infrastructure that can be leveraged together to attract new trade flows and investments.

Rail Port Arad, an Austrian-capital company, has invested approximately 25 million euros to date in land, infrastructure, and equipment, becoming the largest inland intermodal terminal in Romania and one of the largest in Central and Eastern Europe. The company is currently carrying out a new expansion project valued at 10 million euros, which involves expanding infrastructure across an additional 3.5 hectares and strengthening its operational capacity.

Curtici-Arad Free Zone is the only free zone in western Romania, offering significant advantages to economic operators engaged in import, storage, processing, and distribution activities. One of the main benefits is its specific customs status, which allows non-EU goods to be stored without the immediate payment of customs duties, becoming payable, as applicable, upon entry into the European Union market.

The Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Curtici-Arad Free Zone, Dr. Andrei Ando, who serves as the representative of the tutelary authority on the Board of Directors, considers that the partnership lays the groundwork for an integrated logistics offer capable of meeting the demands of international investors.

“This protocol marks the beginning of a shared approach to the international logistics market, where each partner contributes its most valuable assets: Rail Port brings intermodal infrastructure, operational capacity, and commercial connections, while the Free Zone offers customs facilities, investor-dedicated infrastructure, and economic development opportunities. In a global economy where competition no longer takes place only between companies, but also between logistics platforms and regions, the ability to deliver complementary services becomes a major competitive advantage. We aim to promote Curtici as an integrated economic destination where transport, storage, investment, and access to the European market reinforce one another. The fact that our first joint initiatives target Kazakhstan and China proves that this collaboration stems directly from concrete opportunities, not mere intentions,” declared Andrei Ando.

For Rail Port Arad, the protocol represents an opportunity to expand services offered to clients and to consolidate relationships with investors interested in accessing the European market.

“We built Rail Port Arad through successive investments and a long-term development strategy that allowed us to become a benchmark in Romanian intermodal transport. We continue to invest, and our 3.5-hectare expansion via a 10 million euro project confirms our confidence in this platform's potential. Collaborating with Curtici-Arad Free Zone adds a crucial component to our service offering, as we can present international partners not only with high-performance transport infrastructure, but also with the advantages of an economic location featuring customs benefits,” noted Wágner István, General Manager of Rail Port Arad.

In turn, the General Manager of the Curtici-Arad Free Zone Administration, Romulus Tănăsescu, emphasized the practical nature of the collaboration and the opportunities opened for attracting non-EU investors.

“Curtici-Arad Free Zone is at a stage where we are focusing on expanding international economic relations and attracting investors who can leverage our geographic location and customs advantages. The partnership with Rail Port Arad allows us to present investors with a more comprehensive offer, where Free Zone facilities are backed by high-capacity intermodal terminal infrastructure. Simultaneously, we assume responsibility for promoting Rail Port’s services. It is a collaborative model where each partner becomes a promoter for the other, and the ultimate beneficiary is the local economy through the investment and development opportunities that emerge from this cooperation,” stated Romulus Tănăsescu.