An agreement between the government in Chișinău and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the European Commission was signed on Tuesday for the modernisation of railways in the Republic of Moldova.
The Republic of Moldova has not invested in railway infrastructure for the past 30 years, but with the war in Ukraine and the change in logistics chains, there is an urgent need to invest in this transport infrastructure, said Lilia Dabija, Minister of Infrastructure and Regional Development in Chișinău, on the occasion of the signing. The grant and credit agreement has a total value of €43 million and is intended for the rehabilitation of the Vălcineț-Ocnița-Bălți-Ungheni-Chișinău-Căinari railway corridor.
Of the total number of goods transiting the Republic of Moldova via the solidarity corridors, only 35% went by rail. Obviously, the other 65% affected the road infrastructure and the environment, said Lilia Dabija.
Modernising Moldova’s railways with EU money
“We remain confident that with the signing of this agreement, more than 128 km of the solidarity section, starting from Vălcineț and continuing to Bălți-Ungheni-Chișinău-Căinari, will be rehabilitated. This agreement will allow us to rehabilitate the railway infrastructure and to procure the necessary materials, which will lead to increased speed on the railway infrastructure, increased safety and, why not, will give a positive boost to the economic development of the Republic of Moldova”, said Lilia Dabija.
The government official in Chisinau also said that the European Commission has provided a grant of €20 million and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development a loan of €23 million for the rehabilitation of this section of railway. At the same time, Lilia Dabija said that they are also negotiating with the European Investment Bank for a grant of more than €10 million and a loan of €10 million for the rehabilitation of railway infrastructure.
The Moldovan Ministry of Infrastructure and Regional Development aims to complete work on the 128 kilometres of railways for which it has received funding, as well as another 233 kilometres, which are already under evaluation, by 2025.
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