The European Investment Bank (EIB) is lending EUR 60 million for the construction of a motorway bypass for the Serbian capital Belgrade. The loan will help to increase transport safety and capacity in Serbia, which is on the crossroads of the crucial trans-European corridors in the Western Balkans.
The EIB loan will finance the construction of 47 km of two-lane bypass roads and four-lane motorways located west and south of the Serbian capital. The capacity of the four-lane motorway with a total length of 27 km will be some 60 000 vehicles per day and the two-lane section of 20 km is designed to cater for 20 000 vehicles daily. The project also involves 48 new bridges and five interchanges.
The project preparation and ultimate financing was accomplished thanks to the joint efforts of the Roads Department of Serbia, the European Agency for Reconstruction and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
The loan constitutes the first tranche of a EUR 180 million loan approved by the Bank. The loan contracts relating to the remaining funds are expected to be signed within the next three years and will match the project implementation schedule. The loan terms will be up to 25 years with a possible grace period of up to 6 years.
The rehabilitation and extension of trans-European infrastructure, notably transport corridors, is crucial for the successful integration of potential candidate countries like Serbia into the EU single market. The new transport infrastructure is located on Pan-European Transport Corridor X, linking Salzburg and Thesaloniki via Ljubljana – Zagreb – Beograd – Nis – Skopje and Veles, as well as on the European “E” roads E70 and E75. It is also forms part of the South Eastern Axis identified among the five major arterial routes to connect the EU with its neighbouring countries in the report of the EU High Level Group.
Background:
The priority objective of the EIB, the European Union’s financing institution, is to contribute to the integration, balanced development and economic and social cohesion of the Member States. Outside the Union, the EIB implements the financial components of agreements concluded under European development aid and cooperation policies.
Since 2001, EIB financing in Serbia has reached some EUR 1.2 billion, including the current loan. Investments in the Serbian transport sector totalling EUR 600 million account for 50% of total EIB lending in the country. Major projects financed by the Bank recently in this area are: Belgrade Gazela Bridge rehabilitation, Serbia’s Roads and Bridges Rehabilitation and Rehabilitation of the Serbian Railways.