construction

Hungary’s new home construction booming in these regions

Debrecen

Although new home projects are slowing down in most of the Hungarian cities, according to a Hungarian real estate portal, some regions see booming housing construction.

Otthon Centrum real estate portal has completed its first quarter evaluation of this year, penzcentrum.hu reports. According to the results, a total of 254 projects in cities with county rights in Hungary are in the process of building 6,000 apartments. The number of new projects launched this year is 39. According to Gábor Soóki-Tóth, head of analysis at Otthon Centrum, these figures indicate a decline. According to him, 8.6 percent fewer projects are currently under development, and 8.9 percent fewer apartments are being built in cities with county rights than in the same period last year.

Debrecen at the top

However, this downward trend is not present everywhere. In Debrecen, there are currently 49 housing projects underway, and this is the first such high number in three years. So far this year, a total of 9 new projects have been launched in the city. Debrecen is followed by Szeged with 32 projects, while Pécs is in third place with 23 projects. The top three cities are followed in order by Székesfehérvár, Kecskemét, Nyíregyháza and Győr. Hódmezővásárhely is at the bottom of the list. In Hódmezővásárhely, there is only one four-apartment building under construction. In smaller cities such as Baja, Esztergom, Dunaújváros or Salgótarján, no such projects are currently in progress.

Szeged leads in the number of new apartments with 956, while Debrecen has 783 apartments under construction. Nyíregyháza is in third place in terms of the number of apartments being built. Here, 650 new apartments are currently under construction as part of an investment project involving several hundred apartments.

Price per square metre over HUF 1 million

Gábor Soóki-Tóth informed penzcentrum.hu that the prices of newly built apartments in cities with county rights have never been as high as they are now. Compared to a year ago, the average price of newly built apartments is 25 percent higher, which means HUF 947,000 (EUR 2,467) per square metre.

The pace of price rises was record high mainly in the first half of last year, but the 5.2 percent increase compared to the previous quarter indicates a slowdown,

the expert adds.

The most expensive cities are Sopron, Debrecen and Szeged. In Sopron, the average price of newly built apartments is HUF 1.1 million (EUR 2,865) per square metre, while the average price in Debrecen is HUF 1.09 million (EUR 2,839) per square metre and HUF 1.04 million (EUR 2,709) in Szeged. They are followed by Győr with HUF 987,000 (EUR 2,571), Veszprém with HUF 980,000 (EUR 2,552), Pécs with HUF 974,000 (EUR 2,537) and Érd with HUF 961,000 (EUR 2,503) per square metre.

The cheapest city for new-build apartments is Hódmezővásárhely, where the average price per square metre is HUF 485,000 (EUR 1,263). In Békéscsaba, new-build apartments are also cheaper than the average in the country, with an average price of HUF 606,000 (EUR 1,578) per square metre. Although the price of new-build homes has risen significantly in all cities, compared to the previous quarter, the most expensive cities have not increased their prices, penzcentum.hu concludes.

Read also:

VIDEO: Tens of thousands of Hungarians will get a new metro

Tens of thousands of Hungarians will be able to use a brand new metro line thanks to EU, government and local funds. The first phase will be ready by August 2026.

The new Kolozsvár metro under construction

According to iho.hu, Kolozsvár (Cluj Napoca, Romania) is to build a metro line. The first step on the road was a tender concerning a possible metro line’s development and the suburban railway system of the Transylvanian metropolis in 2018. The city council accepted the paper in 2020 and calculated costs worth EUR 2 billion in end-2021. That is more than HUF 750 billion.

The European Union’s recovery and resilience fund (RRF), the Romanian government and the local government signed the relevant financial contract in December 2022. According to a Romanian deputy prime minister, Sorin Mihai Grindeanu, the construction project will be the greatest in the last 30 years. The contractor is a consortium of the Turkish Gülermak, Alstom and Arcada.

They plan to build 19 stations, while the line will be 21.03 km long. The project’s first phase will concern a 7.5 km segment connecting the Monostor (Mănăștur) district with the VIVO! Cluj-Napoca mall, the Györgyfalvi district (Gheorgheni), the Szopori district (Sopor) and will reach the Europa Unită (European Union) station. This segment contains 10 stations. The rail track has to be finished until August 2026.

Majority of the new metro’s cost covered by the EU

The metro will cross Cluj Napoca in a West-East direction and will remain under the surface on the entire line.

The second phase will contain the construction of seven stations between Sfânta Maria station and Szászfenes’s (Florești) Țara Moților. Furthermore, they will build an offset to an industrial district in the Northeastern part of the city. That segment will only be finished by February 2031.

The entire project will cost EUR 2.6 billion, and 2/3rd of that money will come from the European Union’s RRF fund. That is the money pocket Hungary cannot access because of Brussels’ concerns regarding the rule of law situation. In Romania, there are no such concerns. As a result, they not only dream but can initiate such megaprojects using community financial sources.

In Hungary, similar projects exist only on paper yet. There are many examples, from the modernisation of Budapest’s Nyugati railway station, the construction of a superfast train line to the capital’s international airport to the renewal of the Csepel HÉV and its connection to the Gödöllő HÉV, creating the brand new M5 metro line in Budapest.

The capacity of the Kolozsvár metro line will be between 15,200 and 21,600 passengers per hour and direction. The trains will follow each other every 90 seconds. Kolozsvár is one of the Transylvanian Hungarians’ cultural, economic and education centres. There are thousands of university students, and the Hungarian population still reaches 45-50 thousand.

HERE is a video of the new metro.

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PHOTOS: Budapest downtown receives futuristic new sports park

Sports centre Budapest

A multifunctional sports centre will be built near the Aréna Mall in Budapest. Its capacity will reach 4,900 people. The new building will have three storeys, a restaurant, a VIP lounge and skyboxes. That is where MTK’s Chess and Bridge Department will find a new home. Furthermore, a roofed parking garage and a solar power station will also be built.

New sports centre in Budapest’s downtown

According to the plans, the project will cost HUF 27 billion (EUR 70.5 million). The contractor is Bayer Construct Ltd. The company is well-known from other state-sponsored or local government-funded construction projects like Zaha Hadid’s new city centre in the 14th district of Budapest. The final owners of the firm are government-close businessmen Lőrinc Mészáros and István Tiborcz.

The area of the site where the construction will take place is 94 thousand square metres. Bayer Construct won the public procurement because they submitted the lowest price bid, rtl.hu wrote.

The new sports centre will contain two parts. In the lower storey, there will be changing rooms, a kitchen and room for the press. Meanwhile, on the upper level, there will be a restaurant, a VIP lounge, and the Chess and Bridge Department of MTK. There will be a third level where skyboxes will be created.

Unique roof serving as a community space

There will be another building erected having economic and service functions. Buildings A and B will be connected by a plateau spanning multiple thousands of square metres. On the roof of the plateau will be a community space, and they will build parking spaces under.

Sports centre Budapest
Photo: Sagra Architects

Besides, a 250 kW solar power plant will also be built, and they would like to use thermal water to provide heating and hot water to “the largest extent possible.” The government turned the entire construction into a priority project.

Sports centre Budapest
Photo: Sagra Architects

Bayer Construct took part in state-supported construction projects concerning Puskás Aréna, MTK Stadium and the Ludovika Campus years ago as subcontractors.

The owner of the company is Attila Balázs. He was the 60th wealthiest Hungarian in 2022, with a fortune of approximately HUF 30 billion (EUR 78.3 million).

Sports centre Budapest
Photo: Sagra Architects

You may find additional visuals HERE at the website of Sagra Architects, the projects designers.

budapart budapest kopaszi dam
Read alsoPHOTOS, VIDEO: Budapest’s new waterfront residential area under construction

PHOTOS, VIDEO: Archduke Joseph’s Palace in the Buda Castle will look astonishing

Archduke Joseph palace

Magyar Építő Ltd started the construction of Archduke Joseph’s Palace in the Buda Castle two years ago. The project will be carried out in the framework of the Nemzeti Hauszman Program, aiming to reconstruct the famous and beautiful buildings in the Buda Castle district. Now, the company released some visuals about how the new palace will look, and we can tell you that it will be astonishing.

A breathtaking new palace in the Buda Castle

According to Mandiner, the news outlet sharing the images and a video about the reconstruction project, the new palace will serve as the seat of Hungary’s Supreme Court after the construction ends. The work started in July 2021, but the company did not tell when they plan to finish it though the torso of the new building is seemingly ready.

The aim is to create a worthy building for the court, and in that regard, they would like to follow the Austrian, Czech, and Slovakian examples. The Neorenaissance garden and the stables will be open to the public. The latter will even offer touristic programs for the guests. Furthermore, they will recreate the original, drop-shaped conference table. Moreover, there will be an exhibition showing the history of the 33-year-old institution.

Magyar Építő Ltd shared some photos about how the original building looked, how currently the construction project stands and how the new building will look:

The Communists decided not to rebuild it

The original palace was Archduke Joseph’s (1872-1962), the founder of the ‘Hungarian branch’ of the world-famous Habsburg family. Mihály Habsburg-Lotharingiai, Joseph’s great-great-grandson was born in the palace. However, two years later, his family had to flee Hungary because the Soviet troops were approaching. He travelled to Germany. Then they went to Portugal, where they learnt that all their jewellery was robbed by those who buried them during their run. Mihály’s grandmother sewed some inside her clothes. That is how the family could survive for a couple of years. Afterwards, they had to start a new life in Portugal.

Archduke Joseph palace 2
Photo: PrtScr/Youtube

Mihály spoke seven languages by the age of 16 but then became a textile agent in Germany and Austria. He travelled a lot and moved 27 times in his life. Now, he lives in Budapest with his wife, a German princess. He follows the reconstruction of his family’s former palace and is very happy to see that the building in which he was born, comes to life again.

In WWII, the original one suffered some damage, but the Communist leadership of Hungary decided to blow it up instead of rebuilding.

Mihály Habsburg-Lotharingiai in the new palace:

PHOTOS, VIDEO: Budapest’s new waterfront residential area under construction

budapart budapest kopaszi dam

The development of the new waterfront residential area of Újbuda in the capital continues. “BudaPart is a special and unique neighbourhood, where everyone will find what they are looking for. The perfect meeting point with a quiet waterfront, close to nature and innovative, urban infrastructure. A world that you simply enjoy being part of: exceptional community and unique living space – in a breathtaking place,” reads the website of BudaPark. After checking out some pictures and a video of it below, you will know exactly what is meant by the description.

budapart budapest kopaszi dam
Source: Prt Sc from the video of BudaPart/BudaPart, ahogy még nem láttad!

The BudaPart residential area in Budapest’s 11th district, next to the Kopaszi Dam, has been extended with a new eight-storey building with 185 apartments. This was announced in a press release by Property Market Kft. It is recalled that the giant project was voted the best urban development of the past year by the world’s largest real estate trade association, FIABCI, Magyar Építők reports.

As they write, BudaPart is now more than a third complete. The latest phase of the project, which is currently under construction, will focus on the development of transport and public spaces.

budapart budapest kopaszi dam
Source: Prt Sc from the video of BudaPart/BudaPart, ahogy még nem láttad!

The newly inaugurated BudaPart Homes ‘F’ is the sixth residential building in the new district. It is located between the central park and the shopping street on two hectares. Each of the 185 apartments has a terrace or loggia. All of them are equipped with a number of energy-efficient, environmentally friendly solutions.

“In the current economic climate, it is of paramount importance that a property is a valuable solution as a home or even as an investment. In terms of the housing market, the 11th district and especially BudaPart is one of the most sought-after parts of the capital, where property prices have proven their crisis resistance over the long term. What is more, they have achieved above-average value growth in recent years”, said Ákos Kiss, Managing Director of Property Market.

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SPECTACULAR PHOTOS: Boats helping Budapest’s Chain Bridge revamp

Boats Chain Bridge revamp

The reconstruction of Budapest’s illustrious Chain Bridge progresses following the plans. Now a barge helps reinstate some monuments, iron castings and balustrades. Until the end of the revamp project, the bridge remains the workspace. Therefore, you cannot cross it on foot. That will be allowed only during the final phase of the reconstruction. However, you may pass it by bus, bicycle and taxi. And there is a good chance that Budapest will not give a green light for cars even after the end of the renovation.

The ‘new’ Chain Bridge will be astonishing

According to BKK, the Budapest Transport Company, passengers may use the bridge again this fall. However, from 20 March, more buses will be allowed to use Hungary’s historic overpass.

Currently, two boats, a barge and a pusher are working on the revamp of the Chain Bridge. They are needed to reinstate massive iron castings. They have already been put back to their original place on the Pest side. The work will continue on the Buda side pylon.

Afterwards, the decorated balustrades will come. Twenty of them were carefully renovated, and received an anti-corrosion protective layer from a Csepel (21st district) manufacturer. The reconstruction of the balustrades followed some photos taken in 1914-1915 of the original ones.

Boats were required to carry out some parts of the reconstruction work before. For example, barges cleaned the vicinity of the bridge from metal and bombs. That is how they found historic balustrade elements and even Ottoman cannons in the Danube.

Here is how you can cross it for free

The subcontractor A-Híd Ltd is restoring the stonework below the surface level. They also renewed the water level measurer on the Buda side pylon. Furthermore, people work in the chain chambers of the Buda and Pest side. Currently, they are doing the insulation work there. They are finishing the passenger and biker underpass on both sides.

They will put up the new decorative lighting, which will have changeable colour. Besides, they will construct a new surface for the sidewalks and pedestrian crossings on both sides.

Below you may find some additional photos:

Since the bridge is closed to pedestrians, you can use the buses for free between the Clark Ádám and Széchenyi István squares. Moreover, from 20 March on, more buses will commute between Pest and Buda. For tourists in Budapest, it can be a once-in-a-lifetime experience to cross Hungary’s historic bridge, one of the main symbols of the Hungarian nation, on board a bus.

VIDEO, PHOTOS: New Danube bridge to be built in Hungary

The new Danube bridge at Mohács

A bridge over the Danube at Mohács has been planned for thirty years. The approval of the design plans was a key milestone, as this will allow the public procurement procedure to be launched, which could start soon. If all goes according to plan, the 750-metre-long, two-lane bridge will be opened by 2026.

The new Danube bridge at Mohács
Photo: Print Screen from YouTube video/Speciálterv Építőmérnöki Kft. (https://youtube.com/watch?v=NuK4I8_A0Os&feature=shares)

Viktor Orbán spoke about Hungarian bridges, among other things, in his annual prime ministerial speech on 18 February. It was finally decided that the new bridge over the Danube at Mohács, which has been on the agenda for decades, will be built. The only question now is when and from what source. But the answers are already emerging.

“The plan to catch up the eastern part of the country remains. It is time to finally unite Hunnia and Pannonia both economically and in terms of living standards. That is why we are building bridges on the Danube, the one in Paks will be completed soon and the one in Mohács will be started soon,” he concluded.

Reaching milestones one after the other

The new Danube bridge at Mohács
Photo: Print Screen from YouTube video/Speciálterv Építőmérnöki Kft. (https://youtube.com/watch?v=NuK4I8_A0Os&feature=shares)

The construction of the bridge linking the two parts of Mohács (Mohács and Újmohács) has reached another milestone, with the final design plans completed and approved. The plans for the bridge over the Danube and the connecting road network were drawn up by Speciálterv Építőmérnöki Ltd. The company revealed that a 750-metre-long, two-lane, steel-framed bridge with a surface area of 18,000 square metres will be built. There will also be a two-way cycle path on the south side of the bridge.

János Lázár, Minister of Construction and Transport, is committed and determined to build the new Danube bridge in Mohács. It plays a key role in the Hungarian logistics system, which is why funding will be provided. The funding would come from the EU recovery fund. The value of the investment is very difficult to estimate in advance, VG.hu suggests that it could easily be worth hundreds of billions of forints.

The new Danube bridge is a necessity

The new Danube bridge at Mohács
Photo: Print Screen from YouTube video/Speciálterv Építőmérnöki Kft. (https://youtube.com/watch?v=NuK4I8_A0Os&feature=shares)

For thirty years now, there have been plans to build a bridge over the Danube at Mohács. The new bridge will provide a link between highway 51 and the M6 motorway. It would not only make life easier for local residents, but would also be a key element in the national road network. The new bridge would also provide a crossing point for freight traffic from neighbouring countries to the south-south-east.

It is often difficult to cross the Danube by ferry in Mohács, as Gábor Pávkovics, the mayor of Mohács, attests in his post.

The connected road network will also be renewed. In the first phase, the plain-side section of the road will be upgraded to a dual single-lane, secondary road up to the hubs in Újmohács. And the roadway up to the hub of M6 motorway would be two double lanes.

The route has been designed taking into account vulnerable areas and avoiding them. In addition, a port development is also planned. If all of this comes to fruition, it could pave the way for Mohács to become a major logistics hub.

According to Gábor Pávkovics,

“Public procurement procedure will be completed in the first quarter of 2023, and the tender will be completed this year. This will allow construction to start in 2024. If they can keep to this, the bridge could be in place by the commemoration of the Battle of Mohács in 2026.”

Here is the video:

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Building battery plants in Budapest to require residents’ approval

battery catl debrecen

The Budapest assembly passed a position on Wednesday regarding the construction of battery plants, namely that the city’s residents must be consulted before any plans are made to build battery plants or assembly lines within the administrative boundaries of Budapest.

The body approved a joint proposal by group leaders of the opposition Democratic Coalition, Socialists, Momentum and Párbeszéd. The proposal was approved by 17 votes in favour, with representatives of ruling Fidesz-KDNP and independents abstaining from the vote.

Economic minister meets Magyar Suzuki CEO

Márton Nagy, the minister of economic development, held talks with Magyar Suzuki CEO Masato Atsumi in his office on Monday, the economic development ministry said in a statement. The meeting centred on Suzuki’s role in the Hungarian economy and current economic trends, the statement said.

Nagy, highlighting Magyar Suzuki’s role in the region, said the company which has had a presence in Hungary since 1991 could now produce technology required for hybrid vehicles. Magyar Suzuki is among the companies in Hungary with the largest sales revenues, Nagy said, noting that it is able to export to more than 120 countries on five continents, and employs close to 3,000 people.

Hungary has an investment and export-driven economic strategy, the minister said, underscoring the importance of preserving the economy’s ability to attract capital. To ensure this, a new industrial strategy is being prepared, in which the domestic vehicle industry will play a prominent role, he said

Nagy said Japan was the seventh largest investor in Hungary in 2020, adding that one-third of FDI in 2021 had come from Asia. The sides agreed to continue consultations in the interest of promoting developments, the statement said.

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Hungary’s construction sector output down, industrial output up

construction

Here are the latest data from Central Statistical Office (KSH): 

Construction sector output down by 3.9 pc in Dec

Output of Hungary’s construction sector fell by an annual 3.9 percent in December, after rising by 7.6 percent in the previous month, KSH said on Monday.

Output of the buildings segment edged up by 1.1 percent, but civil engineering output slipped by 12.7 percent.

In absolute terms, the sector’s output was at 843 billion forints (EUR 2.2bn) in December. The buildings segment accounted for 68 percent of the total.

Hungary industrial output up 2.0 pc yr/yr in Dec

Hungarian industrial output increased by an annual 2.0 percent in December, up from 0.6 percent in November, KSH confirmed on Monday in a detailed reading of data.

Output of the automotive industry grew by an annual 34.5 percent, albeit from a low base, and up from 23.7 percent in the previous month.

Output of the computer, electronics and optical equipment segment dropped by an annual 8.1 percent.

Output of the food, drinks and tobacco segment fell by 4.8 percent.

Adjusted for the number of working days, of which there were two fewer in December than in the base period, output increased by 5.7 percent.

For the full year, industrial output climbed by 5.8 percent.

Month on month, output fell by 3.8 percent based on seasonally and working day-adjusted data.

Nyugati Railway Station renovation Budapest1
Read alsoPHOTOS: Budapest’s emblematic train station is being renewed

Hungary becoming a battery superpower: is it a good idea?

battery catl debrecen

Hungarian politicians have repeatedly expressed their desire to turn Hungary into a major battery manufacturing power recently. To this end, several multinational companies have already started production and are planning to make further mega-investments in the future. One such example is the one in Debrecen (for which the Hungarian government is providing HUF 320 billion [EUR 826 million] in funding, Márton Tompos, spokesman of the Momentum Movement, shared). There is growing resistance from society, mainly because of environmental problems. Is it really a good idea to try and make Hungary a battery manufacturing empire? And how likely it is that the country will become one in the near future?

Hungary is specialised in the production of batteries

Foreign capital-led economic growth has been a key element of Hungarian economic policy over the past three decades, Portfolio writes. As the automotive industry shifts more and more to hybrid and electric vehicles, battery production is becoming increasingly important. Ramping this up in Hungary could make the country a factor in the global economy.

Hungary has specialised in the production of automotive and electronics products over the past decades. Thus, the country has the capabilities and skills needed to manufacture batteries. But where does Hungary stand right now on the world’s battery production ladder? Portfolio has examined it.

Hungary’s past in battery production

At the beginning of the period under review (around 1995-’96), Hungarian exports were around USD 5.7 million. This sum represented only 0.07 percent of global battery exports. Hungary then increased its battery exports more than twenty-fold by 2004. The situation started to change significantly in 2015. Then, the value of Hungarian battery exports started to rise sharply. In 2021, domestic exports exceeded USD 4.1 billion, accounting for approximately 4.38 percent of global exports in the sector.

Hungary’s role has increased dramatically and by 2020, it was the world’s 6th largest exporter of batteries for electric vehicles.

Problems of becoming a battery superpower

Portfolio reminds us that both batteries and their production are highly polluting and require a lot of energy to produce. This goes against the very things that are the most important in our life right now: sustainability and the energy crisis. This raises questions about the extent to which sustainable development can be achieved.

On the other hand, Hungary’s becoming a major power could mean that battery production will have an increasingly significant share of the export structure, the economic news portal concludes. However, the question is: to what extent will this excessive growth make the Hungarian economy vulnerable?

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PHOTOS: Budapest’s emblematic train station is being renewed

Nyugati Railway Station renovation Budapest1

The renovation of Budapest’s illustrious Nyugati Railway Station continues with spectacular developments. The current works include the modernisation of the station’s main facade and the slender Southeastern spire. By autumn, the view of the station facing Nyugati Square will be breathtaking again since the protective roof is planned to be removed.

New roof, new spires, renewed facade

According to mav.hu, renovation of the ceiling of the subway beneath the 10-13th platforms will start this year with the stairways’ balustrades. The elevator will be removed because it will be replaced by an increased capacity lift. It will make the subway and the platforms accessible for disabled people.

More than 18.5 million people use the Nyugati Railway station every year. The building will be 146 years old in 2023. Since its role is unquestionable in Hungary’s railway system, the renovation works could not be postponed. The reconstruction started in the spring of 2020 with the renovation of the main building’s roof. Magyar Építő carried out the task back then after they kept the hall closed to the public for months.

Railway station Budapest marble hall
The renewed roof. Bird’s-eye view. Photo: facebook.com/mavcsoport

Afterwards, the beautiful marble hall was renewed and inaugurated last year. According to the mav.hu, the international waiting room will open in 2024. The good news is that the new roof above the room is completed, just like in the case of the old grocery shop, the Ceglédi Corridor, and the office buildings in the Nyugati Square wing.

Nyugati Railway Station renovation Budapest1
Photo: facebook.com/mavcsoport

In autumn, they will remove the protective roof from the front of the station. As a result, we will be able to enjoy the renovated facade of the building from Nyugati Square. The facade is under monument protection, while the building and the square have been iconic landmarks to visit and take snaps of. 

Budapest’s railway transport hub

ÉPKAR has been renovating the northwestern spire since last autumn. According to the plans, they will finish it by this June. Meanwhile, MÁV FKG will renew the southwestern spire finishing the job by November.

The renovation of the subway beneath platforms 10-13 will start in the summer. The contractors will replace the cover and the lights on the roof. Furthermore, they will make the subway accessible to disabled passengers. The new elevator will have an increased capacity (1,000 kg), and its frame will be steel. The lift will be vandal-proof, and its construction will start this summer. 

Moreover, they will establish a new CCTV camera system with 246 IP cameras on the platforms and in the different halls and rooms. As a result, the train station will become safer, the Hungarian State Railways believe.

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PHOTOS: BMW factory under construction in Debrecen, Hungary

debrecen bmw factory

The Hungarian News Agency, MTI, published fresh photos of the BMW factory under construction in Debrecen on Friday.

The pictures show huge cranes towering over the plant, which is slowly taking shape. A section of a nearby road can also be seen – with a BMW on it, of course – and a signboard with a plan of the factory, haon.hu reports.

Production to start in 2025, with 1,000 new jobs

The BMW Group is building a car plant on 400 hectares of land, which will be capable of producing around 150,000 cars a year. Production will start in 2025. The founding member of the Neue Klasse generation of models based on the NCAR architecture developed for pure electric models will be built here. The investment of around HUF 400 billion (EUR 1 billion) will create more than 1,000 new jobs in the city, the portal writes.

Gallery

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PHOTOS: Construction of the New National Gallery in Budapest can start soon

New National Gallery Budapest, Hungary

In the past year, several buildings in the Városliget area have opened, such as the House of Hungarian Music and the new Museum of Ethnography. However, the Biodome and the New National Gallery have yet to be completed. Their planning pack has recently started to move towards planning permission.

A set of plans was launched in the official building permit system on 20 December 2022. According to 24.hu, the new building will house the combined modern art collections of the Museum of Fine Arts and the Hungarian National Gallery. Plans were finalised on 16 December.

New National Gallery Budapest, Hungary
Photo: Print screen from YouTube video/
Liget Budapest

Finalised plans

The building will have 3 basement levels. The design of the four-floor building was commissioned by SANAA of Japan and Bánáti+Hartvig Architects back in 2015. Since then, a number of visual designs have been published but the final design has not been completed. If the Government Office approves the plans, construction work on the Petőfi Hall site could start this year.

New National Gallery Budapest, Hungary
Photo: Print screen from YouTube video/
Liget Budapest

In addition to the glass, the museum building will be dominated by limestone, fine concrete and fair-faced concrete surfaces.

“We will renegotiate the Liget project in public, renovate Városliget as a public park, and look for a new location for the museum buildings elsewhere,”

said Gergely Karácsony during the 2019 mayoral election, emphasising that the matter of Városliget is an important part of his programme. Even though the two parties failed to cooperate effectively, the planning of the Gallery continued. The cost, estimated at HUF 26 billion (EUR 66,500,833) in 2017, has risen to HUF 72 billion (EUR 184,156,153).

New National Gallery Budapest, Hungary
Photo: Print screen from YouTube video/
Liget Budapest

The plans call for the green roof of the building, which will have almost 200 bicycle parking spaces, to be decorated with rooftop terraces and plants. At its highest point, the building will rise 31 metres above ground level.

The fourth version of the New National Gallery

According to the building system, different versions have already been given the go-ahead several times: in 2018, 2019 and 2020. The fourth version was approved in 2022. This year, the government’s commitment to the project became clear after its victory in the parliamentary elections.

New National Gallery Budapest, Hungary
Photo: Print screen from YouTube video/
Liget Budapest

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said at the inauguration ceremony of the new Ethnographic Museum:

“Europe’s biggest cultural investment must be fully completed. I feel that we have been given the authority to implement the whole programme.”

The Ministerial Commissioner for Works, László Baán, confirmed his statement. According to Baán, the only thing left to do is to call for procuring and construction can start in 2023.

In an interview with válaszonline.hu, Gergely Karácsony underlined that the debates were not over, and he would be surprised if the government had enough money to build the new building in the next two years.

New National Gallery Budapest, Hungary
Photo: Print screen from YouTube video/
Liget Budapest

Baán also spoke in July about the steady rise in the cost of the Liget project to hvg.hu, which by then had cost HUF 250 billion (EUR 639,482,250), due to more than 50 percent construction inflation in four years. In an interview with metropol.hu, he claimed that the New National Gallery and the Biodome could have been completed by now if the capital had not only been interested in political gain in the development of Városliget.

The new date for the inauguration of the building is planned for 2027-2028.

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PHOTOS: Budapest Chain Bridge renovation reaches a milestone, new handrails presented

Chain Bridge Budapest handrail

According to the mayor of Budapest, Gergely Karácsony, a manufacturer in Csepel, the capital’s 21st district, is currently repainting the handrails and other heritage elements of the new Chain Bridge. The bridge has been the landmark of Budapest for more than 150 years, and its reconstruction goes as planned, Mr Karácsony added.

According to the mayor’s Facebook post, the bridge’s reconstruction continues in the workshops during the winter. The handrail system of the iconic building spans 704 metres. But rust has damaged most of them since the last renovation of the bridge was carried out in the Socialist era. Thus, many elements were remade. Based on the plans, they will be installed in February.

According to bkk.hu, the elements will be cleaned and covered with a three-ply anticorrosion layer. The new colour of the bridge will be blueish-grey. There will be 20 balustrades reinstalled. Eight of them were re-manufactured based on archive photos of the 1914-1915 appearance of the bridge.

Here are some photos:

Since the bridge is a construction site during the renovation, pedestrians are not allowed to use it until the end of the project. However, you can travel on it by BKK buses. Furthermore, you do not even have to pay for the crossing. You may use the BKK vehicles for free between the Clark Ádám tér and the Széchenyi István tér, bkk.hu highlighted.

Budapest’s first and Hungary’s symbolic bridge was reopened last December for cyclists, motorcyclists and taxis. Based on the plans, the bridge will be ready by this autumn.

And some additional photos are below:

Stadiums, World Championships: multiple priced prestige projects in Hungary

2017 World Aquatics Championships Budapest, Hungary

The most expensive stadium in the country is being constructed for the nine-day event, the cost approaching HUF 250 billion (EUR 644,209,179). The reason for the secrecy may be that the government’s prestige projects often cost much more than originally planned. The head of the company organising the world championships said they only had estimated figures, but that they determine the total costs afterwards.

This August, the capital will host the World Athletics Championships, for which the government is building a brand new arena. According to rtl.hu, the gigantic building on the banks of the Danube is already the most expensive sports facility in Hungary. Currently, it is estimated that the new athletics stadium in Budapest will cost HUF 246 billion (EUR 634,119,055).

Increasing budget

The construction of the stadium, with a capacity of 40,000 people, started in 2020. However, construction is not over yet and the World Championships are still more than six months away. This one of the prestige projects, including related developments, was said to cost HUF 204 billion (EUR 526,039,751), but prices have been rising ever since. Looking at similar projects in recent years, it is certain that the final figure of HUF 246 billion (EUR 634,119,055) is not the final sum.

And HUF 246 billion (EUR 634,119,055) is the current price of the stadium alone. How much public money is being spent on organising the nine-day world championship is not being disclosed.

“The government has pledged to provide all the necessary resources,”

said Balázs Németh, CEO of the company organising the World Athletics Championships.

The government gave an extra HUF 35 billion (EUR 90,230,140) for the prestige project last October. In December, the budget was increased by another HUF 8 billion (EUR 20,623,504), despite the fact that Nándor Csepreghy, State Secretary of the Ministry of Construction and Investment, said that it would not be more expensive because the construction of the structure was finished and the work would be partly carried out with previously purchased materials.

Orbán Viktor on prestige projects: “Let there be trust, we will solve the rest”

In 2017, the government brushed off questions about the increase in costs by claiming that many of the improvements would have been made without the World Cup. The event cost more than HUF 130 billion (EUR 335,231,667) instead of the HUF 25 billion (EUR 64,467,628) originally planned. “In the modern world, it’s not money that matters – although there are theories to that effect – but trust. We will find a way to make money” – this is what Viktor Orbán said when the foundation stone was laid for the swimming pool to be built for the 2017 World Aquatics Championships. So that was necessary.

2017 World Aquatics Championships Budapest, Hungary
Photo: Facebook/Budapest 2017 – FINA World Championships

Speaking of the World Championships, the 2019 World Kayak Championships and the development of the Olympic Centre in Szeged were small compared to the World Aquatics Championships. But the latter cost HUF 5 billion (12,896,610) instead of the planned HUF 1.85 billion (EUR 4,771,919), while the former cost three times as much as planned.

Simpler stadium, more expensive construction

The government decided in 2011 to demolish the old Népstadion and build a completely new arena. The costs were estimated at HUF 35 billion (EUR 90,270,705) in 2011. In 2014, the cost was estimated at HUF 100 billion (EUR 257,916,300), and the construction of a multifunctional sports centre that could host 6-7 other sports besides football was promised.

After another redesign, the Puskás Arena ended up being a much simpler one, but this was not reflected in the price: it cost HUF 150 billion (EUR 386,809,489). Typically, similar investments cost twice as much as planned – e.g. the Bozsik Stadium, the Vasas sports facility and the new ice hall of UTE – but some cost four times as much, such as the new Szeged swimming pool. Last year, the Hungarian House of Music in Városliget was voted the best building in the world, a building so unique that every element of it had to be made separately. This was reflected in its price: instead of the HUF 17 billion (EUR 43,837,931) originally planned, it was built for almost double that.

Puskás Arena Budapest, Hungary
Source: Facebook/Puskás Aréna

Controversial projects

Last year, the Prime Minister handed over another one of the prestige projects, the new building of the Museum of Ethnography. Almost HUF 40 billion (EUR 103,157,400) were spent on that investment. The development of Városliget has been controversial for years. because the expected cost of the megaproject has increased fivefold in a few years. In 2012, the total cost was estimated at HUF 55 billion (EUR 141,862,914), but in 2018, it was already estimated to be five times as much.

It is not known how much it will cost to move government departments to the Buda Castle district, restore the palaces of Dísz Square and Szent György Square, and renovate the Buda Castle Palace. However, experts interviewed by atlatszo.hu believe that the total price could exceed HUF 1,000 billion (EUR 2,579,325,714).

Battery plant construction protested against in Hungary

iváncsa battery factory sk

Opposition LMP spokesperson Anna Süveg said government plans to turn Hungary into a “battery production superpower” are “dangerous and wrong” at a press conference on Saturday.

Áron Tóth, the party’s head in Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok County, warned that preparations by the mayor of Szolnok, in central Hungary, to expand the city’s industrial park as well as a decision to hand over the local waterworks to the state suggest a battery plant could be built there.

He asked Ferenc Szalai, the city’s Fidesz mayor, to make an announcement on whether or not a battery plant is planned in Szolnok.

Süveg complained that the government has “systematically scaled back the institutional system for environmental protection since 2021” and said waterworks are “on the brink of collapse”.

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Metro station covered in golden colour in downtown Budapest

Golden coloured M3 metro station's bird design

Two more stations on the M3 metro line in the city centre will be connected to the metro in January. The designers gave an insight into the conception, explaining their interpretation of the graphic image. The winners of the prestigious tender of STRABAG Art award International were two local artists and a French-Hungarian artist, who designed two perimeter walls on the M3 metro station.

Metro station covered in golden colour

On the underpass level of the redesigned station, the familiar orange colour of more than forty years is a reminder of the past. However, its new shade suggests freshness.

Descending the escalator, a whole new world of sights is revealed. According to BKV.hu, the designers have chosen colours and graphic motifs for the platform level in reference to the Franciscan order that gave its name to the urban square above the station. The contrast between the subdued, slightly self-effacing brown and the brilliant gold defines the look.

Golden coloured M3 metro station construction workers
Photo: bkv.hu

The raw steel columns further enrich the aesthetics of the space, while at the same time fitting in with the functionalist tradition of the line. The paving of the track space is designed with a graphic image that relates to the movement that is the essence of the station.

Abstract, airy and serene at once, the design also subtly alludes to the legend of Saint Francis, one of the most precious references in 14th-century Hungarian literature. The legend is a reminder of a lay view of the Church moving away from the idea of the freedom of birds, and in the second part, St Francis prevents the attacks of a wolf.

Golden coloured M3 metro station's bird design
Photo: Screenshot from YouTube/Metró Felújítási Projekt Igazgatóság

The designers of the metro station are Zsolt Kosztolányi and András Klopp, while Kamilla Réti and Boglárka Somogyi joined the design team to create the bird motif.

Creative ideas for metro station renewal

Another creative idea is a collaboration project between STRABAG és a BKV Ltd. taking place in metro stations. The former has been successful in creating connections between the arts and business, for example, through its annual art award for young artists.

According to artisbusiness.hu, the first tender of STRABAG took place in 1994, but it was only for Austrian citizens – where the registered office of the company was. Fifteen years later, in 2009, the tender was renamed to STRABAG Artaward International, expanding throughout other European countries.

In June 2022, two Hungarians were among the awarded tenderers. Dániel Bernáth and Ákos Ezer won the prestigious award from among 77 participants in the international competition. Daniel Labrosse‘s works of art are displayed on the perimeter walls of two service rooms. The work had to integrate the specific and at the same time difficult and sometimes harsh elements of the construction industry, the uniqueness of the metro line’s public and the necessity of the metro as a means of transport.

The aim of STRABAG’s metro project was to create a work on one of Hungary’s busiest metro lines that would illustrate the role of the M3 metro line and the ongoing work on the line.

M3 Metro station's creative renewal
Photo: Screenshot from YouTube/Metró Felújítási Projekt Igazgatóság

Unexpected construction boom in Hungary

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Output of Hungary’s construction sector rose by an annual 7.0 percent in November, after falling by 2.5 percent in the previous month, the Central Statistical Office (KSH) said on Monday.

Output of the buildings segment increased by 18.6 percent but civil engineering output slipped by 6.9 percent. Based on seasonally and working day adjusted indices construction output was above the October level by 6.9%.

In November 2022 compared to the same month of the previous year:

  • Out of the main groups of construction the output at construction of buildings was 18.6% higher, that of civil engineering was 6.9% lower.
  • Among the divisions of construction, production grew by 9.1% in the construction of buildings, civil engineering output lessened by 14,0%. Specialised constructions production grew by 18.9%.
  • The volume of new contracts concluded was above the November 2021 base by 3.8%, within it the volume of contracts for the construction of buildings was 9.6% higher, the volume regarding civil engineering declined by 4.2% year-on-year. .
  • The volume of the end-of-November stock of contracts at construction enterprises lessened by 1.0%, within it the volume of contracts was up by 5.0% for the construction of buildings and down by 5.0% for civil engineering works compared to the same period of the previous year.

In the first eleven months of 2022 compared to the same period of the previous year:

  • Construction output rose by 4.2%.

In absolute terms, construction sector output reached 798 billion forints (EUR 2bn) in November. The buildings segment accounted for 62 percent of the total, KSH said.

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