In the 3rd quarter construction grew by a fourth during the year

In the 3rd quarter of 2011, the production value of construction enterprises amounted to 527 million euros, of which the production value of building construction was 296 million euros and the production of civil engineering totalled 231 million euros. Compared to the same quarter of 2010, the volume of building construction increased 36% and the volume of civil engineering 15%. The volume of the construction market in real terms is comparable with the year 2005.

The growth in construction volumes was caused mainly by the increase in the volumes in building construction on the domestic construction market. The decline in building construction, which had lasted since 2008 turned to the rise in the 1st quarter this year, when the building construction grew 35% compared to the same quarter of the previous year, in the 2nd quarter the increase was 11% and in the 3rd quarter already 43%. The rapid growth was influenced also by the low reference base in 2010. As the share of new building construction continues to decline, the growth in building construction is caused mainly by repair and reconstruction work with the help of reconstruction allocations in order to increase energy efficiency.

The construction volume of Estonian construction enterprises in foreign countries increased 4% compared to the 3rd quarter of 2010. The increase was caused mainly by civil engineering. The share of the construction volumes in foreign countries accounted for 9% of the total volume of construction in the 3rd quarter.

According to the data of the Register of Construction Works, in the 3rd quarter of 2011, the number of dwelling completions was 470, i.e. 150 dwellings more than in the same period of 2010. Over a half of completed dwellings were block of flats. The majority of completed dwellings were situated in Tallinn. In spite of the consumer’s price sensitivity the demand for new dwellings with good location and quality has remained. In the 3rd quarter of 2011, building permits were granted for the construction of 528 dwellings, which stayed on the level the same quarter of 2010, but the growth trend of three quarters as a whole continues. The most popular type of building was block of flats.

In the 3rd quarter of 2011, the number of completed non-residential buildings was 163 with the useful floor area of 74,000 square metres. The useful floor area of agricultural, educational and transport buildings increased the most. Compared to the 3rd quarter of 2010, the useful floor area and the cubic capacity of completed non-residential buildings decreased.

Construction volume index and its trend, 1st quarter 2000 – 3rd quarter 2011 (average of quarters of 2005 = 100)