October 16 (SeeNews) - Croatia's HZ Infrastruktura said on Monday it plans to invest some 6.2 billion euro ($6.5 billion) in the country's railway infrastructure in the next 10 to 12 years.
"It is the largest investment plan ever in the Croatian history," the railway infrastructure operator said in an emailed statement to SeeNews. It is currently carrying out 27 large infrastructure projects for upgrade and modernisation, including 17 projects supported by European Union funds. These projects are currently at various stages of documentation preparation or are already underway, and their objective is to revolutionise railway transportation in Croatia by providing faster, safer, and economically competitive services. This includes a targeted passenger train speed of up to 160 km/h and 120 km/h for cargo trains.
The majority of the investment funds are sourced from European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) and the national recovery plan. Additionally, the company has secured financing for these projects through loans from development banks such as the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, as well as loans from commercial banks.
The majority of these infrastructure projects are currently in progress on two key corridors: the Mediterranean corridor, which spans from the northern Adriatic port town of Rijeka, through the Croatian capital Zagreb, and onwards to Hungary's capital, Budapest, and the corridor that stretches from the Croatian border with Slovenia to the border with Serbia. Both of these corridors are integral parts of the primary Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T).
The most significant infrastructure project currently in progress is the reconstruction and construction of a second track on the Krizevci – Koprivnica railway, extending to the Croatian border with Hungary in the north. It is expected that approximately half of these works will be finished by the year's end.
Intensive work is also in progress to upgrade the Zagreb Kustosija – Zagreb Western Railway Station – Zagreb Central Railway Station stretch, involving the renovation of about 3.5 km of railways, which are among the most frequently used in the country, accommodating about150 passenger and cargo trains daily. The new track is expected to be operational in the second half of 2024, marking the completion of the renovation for the track from the Slovenian border to the Zagreb Central Railway Station.
Another part of the investments concerns improvement the safety level on more than 300 railway and road junctions by deployment of modern signal and safety equipment.
In the last 10 years, some 1 billion euro has been invested in Croatia’s railway infrastructure.
($ = 0.949 euro)