Construction volumes decreased in 2015

The production value of building construction was 1.3 billion euros and the production of civil engineering works totalled 732 million euros. Compared to 2014, the volume of building construction decreased 2% and the volume of civil engineering decreased by a tenth.

The domestic construction market was influenced the most by a decrease in civil engineering volumes. There was also decrease in repair and reconstruction work in building construction. At the same time new building construction, which had taken an upturn already in 2013, continued its growth trend in 2015 as well.

The construction volume of Estonian construction enterprises in foreign countries increased about a third compared to 2014, influenced mainly by the construction of buildings. Construction volumes in foreign countries accounted for 11% of the total volume of construction in 2015.

The number of dwelling completions increased for the fourth year in succession. According to the data of the Register of Construction Works, in 2015, the number of dwelling completions was 3,969, i.e. 1,213 dwellings more than the year before. The largest share of completed dwellings was situated in blocks of flats and every second dwelling had two or three rooms. The majority of completed dwellings were situated in Tallinn, in the neighbouring rural municipalities of Tallinn, and in Tartu county.

There is still a demand for new dwellings with a good location and high quality. In 2015, building permits were granted for the construction of 5,588 dwellings, which is about a half more than in 2014. The most popular type of building was a block of flats.

In 2015, the number of completed non-residential buildings was 1,071 with a useful floor area of 626,700 square metres – this was primarily made up of new storage, industrial and office premises. Compared to 2014, the useful floor area as well as the cubic capacity of completed non-residential buildings increased.

In the 4th quarter of 2015, the production value of construction amounted to 558 million euros, which was 7% less than in the 4th quarter of 2014. The volumes of building construction as well as civil engineering decreased.