SERBIA CORRIDOR X RAILWAYS FL - GLOBAL GATEWAY

The project consists of upgrading and modernisation of the Belgrade - Nis railway line (approximately 230 km).

The project contributes to the development of economic infrastructure, in particular transport. It is located on the core Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T), as extended to specific neighbouring countries based on high-level agreements on transport infrastructure. By facilitating rail transport, the project will contribute to the competitiveness of the country's economy. The project will increase the quality, availability and reliability of rail services in Serbia, and contribute to the modal shift from road to rail. It will generate time and vehicle operating costs savings, reduce the maintenance costs of the infrastructure, improve railway and road safety and present environmental benefits, including climate change mitigation.

The project will consist of several components and the environmental impact assessment (EIA) requirements for them may vary. If situated in the EU, the components where track will be doubled or the alignment significantly modified would fall within Annex I of Directive 2011/92/EU as amended by Directive 2014/52/EU (the EIA Directive) and therefore be subject to an EIA. The remaining components, which will mostly consist of the modernisation of the existing tracks without significant changes to the alignment would most likely fall within Annex II of the EIA Directive. The project will require some physical and economic resettlement for construction of the track duplications and sections on new alignment. The project components will undergo ESIA according to the national legislation and the Bank's environmental and social standards, including an assessment of potential impact on any conservation areas. The compliance of the procedures in place with the EIB's environmental and social standards will be further analysed during the appraisal.

The Bank will require the Promoter to ensure that implementation of the project will be done in accordance with the Bank's Guide to Procurement and the relevant applicable EU public procurement rules.

The proposed operation is expected be covered by the comprehensive guarantee granted to the EIB under the Dedicated Investment Window 1 of EFSD+, established by the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument (NDICI) Global Europe.