The people of Bosnia and Herzegovina will make a further step towards EU markets with the construction of new sections of Corridor Vc, the country’s main infrastructure project which will strengthen its regional and international integration.
Under an agreement signed on September 12, the EBRD is providing a €180 million sovereign loan to Bosnia and Herzegovina for the construction of three new sections of Corridor Vc in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina with a total length of approximately 15.8 km.
The loan will be provided in two tranches as follows:
- Tranche 1 of up to €120 million to co-finance with the European Investment Bank (EIB) the construction of a motorway section from Poprikusa to Nemila; and to finance the construction of Tunnel Ivan;
- Tranche 2 of up to €60 million to finance the construction of a motorway section from the Mostar South Interchange to Tunnel Kvanj.
The European Union is the EBRD’s strategic partner in the development of the Corridor Vc. The loan is expected to be co-financed by an investment grant in the amount of €11.8 million from the European Union, through the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF) which is expected to be approved in December 2018.
The project will expand the existing road infrastructure by constructing new sections of the motorway which will materially improve mobility and enhance traffic safety. The loan is part of a wider commitment following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding in February 2018 between the EBRD and the Ministers of Transport and Communications of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Republika Srpska for an investment programme of over €700 million for the period 2018-2020.
Corridor Vc is a branch of the fifth Pan-European corridor and with a total length of 700 km will connect Hungary and eastern Croatia to Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Adriatic Sea. The longest part of the route goes through Bosnia and Herzegovina, while the road also serves as the shortest connection of the eastern and southern parts of Croatia.
Since the beginning of its operations in Bosnia and Herzegovina the EBRD has invested €2.1 billion in almost 150 projects in the country.
Original source: EBRD
Published on 12 September 2018
