North-South railway corridor: Valcinet – Ocnita – Balti – Ungheni – Chisinau – Cainari will be rehabilitated. To carry out the works, the European Commission (EC) offers the country a grant worth 20 million euros, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) grants a loan of 23 million euros. The loan and grant agreements were signed on June 26 in Chisinau.
“Regrettably, in the last 30 years, the state did not invest or did it somehow segmentally in the field of railway infrastructure. With the war in Ukraine, with the modification of logistics chains, the need for investments in this transport infrastructure appeared. By signing the agreement with the EBRD and EC, over 128 km of the solidarity section Valcinet – Ocnita – Balti – Ungheni – Chisinau – Cainari will be rehabilitated, out of the total of 446 km. The agreement will allow us to rehabilitate the railway infrastructure, procure the necessary materials, rails, ballast, which will lead to increased speed, safety and will give a positive boost to the economic development of the Republic of Moldova,” said Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development Lilia Dabija.
The first amount of 12 million euros, from the grant of 23 million euros granted by the EBRD, is applicable from the date of signing the agreement, and the second amount of 11 million euros will be requested as necessary, during the development of the contractual relations.
At the same time, Lilia Dabija announced that the authorities were also negotiating with the European Investment Bank (EIB) to offer a grant of over 10 million euros and a loan of 10 million euros, so that the total amount would allow the rehabilitation of the 128 km of the section Valcinet – Ocnita – Balti – Ungheni – Chisinau – Cainari.
Another project initiated in the railway infrastructure aims at the rehabilitation of the Bender – Causeni – Basarabeasca – Etulia – Giurgiulesti sector. For the works, the EBRD, the EIB and the EU granted 107 million euros. The project will be completed in 2025.
“We propose that until 2025, the 128 km of railway for which we obtained funding today, but also the 233 km that are already in the evaluation procedure, will be completed, so that in 2025 to have a section of over 361 km rehabilitated with the support of the EBRD, the EIB and the European Commission,” concluded Lilia Dabija. (Moldpres/Business World Magazine)
