July 19 (SeeNews) - The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is considering a 100 million euro ($112.6 million) loan to Serbian railway passenger operator Srbija Voz to support the company's rolling-stock renewal programme, it said.
The EBRD has approved the concept of a project for the acquisition of 18 new electric multiple units (EMUs) and set October 30 as a target date for the completion of a board review of the loan, the lender said in a notice earlier this week.
The project will enable the modal shift from road-based transport to passenger rail transportation, the EBRD said. The project should also improve Srbija Voz's financial sustainability as the purchase of modern coaches will reduce its operational costs and increase its fare revenues.
Srbija Voz was created in August 2015 through the unbundling of the vertically-integrated railway operator Zeleznice Srbije. It is fully owned by the Serbian government through the Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure.
The EBRD is a leading investor in Serbia with more than 5.2 billion euro in 238 investment projects to date.
($ = 0.88803 euro)