Metrorex, the Bucharest metro operator, intends to invest EUR 6.5 billion to modernise and develop the metro system. The company will consider engaging financial institutions for loans, if the European grants will not cover the needed investments.
The announcement was made by Marin Aldea, the director general of Metrorex, during the Railway Days Investment Summit, held in Bucharest on 8-9 October.
“Under the 2021-2027 MFF, we will have a EUR 6.5 billion funding, but is it obvious that not all our projects will be covered. We will search for new funding options such as loans provided by the financial institutions and we will try to launch new projects which will develop the entire transport system of Bucharest and its surroundings,” Aldea said.
The operator plans to extend the existing metro lines and to construct new ones.
Under the plans, the Line 2 will be extended with two stations on the North branch. EUR 180 million is the estimated cost for the construction of the 1.6 km section. In addition, on the South section, the line will be extended by one station, to Berceni, a district in the southern part of Bucharest.
EUR 1.8 billion is the estimated value for a metro ring, which would be constructed between Crangasi and Dristor. The line will provide direct transport connection in the southern part of the Romanian capital. “Our plans for this ring envisages the construction of a 17-km metro line, which will need a EUR 1.8 billion investment,” Marin Aldea said.
Another important metro project includes the extension of Line 4, from Gara de Nord to Progresul. “With this project, we will complete the Line 4, providing efficient transport connection with the entire Bucharest transport system. Currently, the pre – feasibility and the feasibility studies are completed, through a Swiss grant,” the director general of Metrorex said.
Under the project, a 12-km line will be constructed, served by 13 stations and one depot. It is expected that 15 trains will operate on the new line, which is estimated at EUR 1.8 billion. “We will consider the European funding for the implementation of this project. As the project meets the necessary conditions, we will apply the European support under the 2021-2027 multiannual financial framework. The construction works would take 4 years,” Marin Aldea explained.
Line 7 is another Metrorex strategic project, which involves the construction of a 26-km metro line proving transport connections bewteen Bragadiru and Voluntari, two towns in the Ilfov County, which surrounds Bucharest. The total value of the project is estimated at EUR 2.4 billion.
Currently, Metrorex is implementing the Line 5 project. The Drumul Taberei – Eroilor section is expected to enter commercial service in December. The second section, from Eroilor to Iancului, will have 6 stations, which will need a EUR 651 million investment. The design work is already completed, and the financing would be provided under the next MFF.
Line 6, which will provide metro link to the Henri Coanda International Airport and the capital, is an ongoing project. For the 1 Mai – Airport section, 10 proposals have been submitted, of which 6 finalists will remain under the final state of the procurement. “For the second Lot, the section to the Airport, the tender documents are in the final stage and soon we will publish the tender on the Electronic System for Public Procurement (SICAP).” After four years of construction works, the Line 6 will enter transport services.
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