Danube–Bucharest Canal

[1] The earliest plans, made by engineer Nicolae Cucu in 1880, sought to link Bucharest to the Danube at Oltenița.

However, the world recession of the early 1930s prevented the government from investing large amounts of money in such projects.

Communist leader Nicolae Ceaușescu also wanted to have a direct link to Northern Europe, as Rhine-Main-Danube Canal was also built then.

The building of the canal began in 1986, the project was supposed to have five locks and four hydroelectric plants (the only one that is currently working is the one at Mihăilești).

As of 2013, a joint Romanian-EU project planned to complete the canal from 2014 to 2020 using national and Cohesion funds as part of the EU strategy for the Danube Region.