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IronPlanet, a US-based on online marketplace for buying and selling used heavy equipment, has acquired Kruse Energy and Equipment Auctioneers for an undisclosed sum. Kruse is based in Odessa, Texas, and Oklahoma City and focuses on oilfield equipment. It conducts auctions in the United States and Canada. Kruse has conducted more than 90% of the energy auctions in the United States in the past 25 years. Kruse will operate as a wholly-owned subsidiary of IronPlanet, maintaining its brand and employees. Co-

Construction of the proposed Sebes-Turda motorway will start by the end of November, according to Eugen Cecan, director of Romania’s Regional Administration for Roads and Bridges. Cecan made the announcement in Cluj, the second most populous city in Romania after the capital Bucharest and considered the unofficial capital to the historic province of Transylvania. Cost of the 70km project is around US$500.34 million (€400 million), with 85% coming from the European Union as grants and the central gover

JCB has launched a range of midi excavators just as the market for such compact equipment looks set to grow 16% within four years. The first excavators available in the new line-up are the 8.5 tonne 86C-1 conventional tail-swing and the 85Z-1 zero-tail-swing models. JCB claimed that a major advantage of the new models is the Kohler diesel engine, which requires no DPF. It reduces cost of ownership and offers ease of maintenance. JCB’s chief innovation and growth officer Tim Burnhope said the compact exca

Angloa will build a 26km ring road to connect the cities of Quilemba and Eywa in the southwestern province of Huila. The 9m wide road will cost around US$43.24 million and be completed in 18 months, Angola’s national news agency ANGOP reported. The governor of Huila, João Marcelino Tyipinge, announced the project in Lubango, capital city of the province. Anglo recently announced that the final stretch of the road from the national capital Luanda on the southern coast to the strategic city of Soyo in the

The government of Tenerife said it is looking for investors to come up with around $32 million (€25.7m) to construct and run the proposed Circuit de Tenerife racing track. The tender, to manage the 4.07km track for 40 years but which could be extended to 46, was opened in September and will close on February 3. Tenerife is the largest and most populous island of the seven Canary Islands, part of Spain but an autonomous region lying off the northwest African coast. The island, with around 2,030km2 has arou

Intercomp has launched an improved version of its CS750 crane scale for medium industrial applications. Capacities range from 50kg to 500kg and include many NTEP certified models. The CS750 can now be ordered with Intercomp’s RFX Wireless Weighing Technology. Battery life has improved from 500 hours of continuous use to 800 hours -- 5,000 hours in standby mode. The scale also now needs only four D-cell batteries. If direct power is required, the optional direct power chord has been upgraded from a

The Bashkortostan Republic (Volga) in western Russia could issue a tender for the Ufa Eastern exit road project by the end of the year. Government authorities in Bashkortostan said they and VEB (Vnesheconombank) are completing a feasibility study of the Ufa Eastern exit road project. The project, expected to cost around $591 million, involves completion of an underground tunnel to the Ufa River, a bridge and a road to the M5 motorway. The exit road will be about 14km. Transport infrastructure will be

The Rostov region will have invested nearly US$361 million in its southern road networks this year. Around $220 million will be spent on regional roads, including $84 million on construction and renovation, $57 million on maintenance, $43 million in repairs and $25 million on overhaul. Municipalities will receive subsidies totaling $134 million, including nearly $86 million for construction, renovation and overhaul of intra-city, intra-village and inter-village roads and pedestrian ways. Around $25 mi

Vietnam is considering selling its ownership in several major highways to help pay for more road projects. The Ministry of Transport (MoT) recently said that the government’s infrastructure investor body Vietnam Infrastructure Development and Finance Investment (VIDIFI), would sell 70% of its ownership in the Hanoi–Hai Phong Highway project to a buyer from India. The move is part of a strategy that could see Vietnam sell off more of its investment in highway projects, either under construction or complete

Jakarta Tollroad Development (JTD) has said it aims to start construction of the six Jakarta inner city toll roads in the middle of next year. The project, nearly 70km in total and much of it elevated, is at the detailed engineering design stage. The toll roads will connect all five of Jakarta’s municipalities. The first construction stage involving the Semanan-Sunter-Pulogebang toll road is expected to US$1.20 billion. Total cost for the whole project is estimated at up to $3.2 billion. According to

Bolivia has started work on the new northern La Paz road, a five-year, US$250 million project. Work is underway on the first section, known as Apolo Charasani, while the second section, called Charasani-Escoma, is still under analysis. World Highways reported in September that Bolivia planned to invest nearly $510 million for road building works. The country’s state-run road company, Administradora Boliviana de Carreteras, said 32 road maintenance and construction projects stretching for 5,773km in Sant

The Italian construction equipment manufacturer body Unacea has revealed comprehensive information on machine sales and exports. The data shows that construction machine sales in Italy grew 12% in the first nine months of 2014. However exports fell 7% and Unacea believes that the export performance of Italian manufacturers on the world market will have shrunk by the end of the year compared with the figures for 2013. Over the first nine months of 2014, construction equipment sold in the Italian market sto

Progress is said to be on track for the Eurasia Tunnel being constructed in Turkey. Around 33% of the link has already been built. This project will be the first tunnel link for Istanbul and will provide a vehicle crossing for the Bosporus. Construction work commenced in April 2014. The tunnel will be 95m deep and the underground construction work is due for completion by the end of 2015. Meanwhile the fitting out work and connecting links to the tunnel will be complete by August 2017. The tunnel will be 14

In New Zealand the Government is now considering charging tolls for the use of Auckland's motorways. The proposal would help plug a US$9.5 billion (NZ$12 billion) transport funding gap by charging a toll of $1.58 for using motorways in Auckland between 6am and 7pm on weekdays and 79 Cents between 6am and 7pm on weekends. There will be no toll charges for using Auckland's motorways after 7pm. Another option to plug the funding gap is to charge an annual fuel tax. The government could also opt to increase tol

The Philippines Government plans to reopen the tender process for the Cavite-Laguna Expressway (CALAX) project. This public-private partnership (PPP) project is valued at some US$791.7 million. The 47km toll road project will feature a 35-year concession covering design and construction, as well as financing and operation. The earlier bid from Optimal Infrastructure Development, a unit of San Miguel, was disqualified due to technical reasons. With this disqualification, Team Orion became the party with the