May 18 (SeeNews) - The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) said on Wednesday it is considering extending a 15 million euro ($16.9 million) senior corporate loan to Bosnian power distribution company Elektrokrajina [BANJ:EKBL-R-A] for a network revamp project.
The funds would cover the reconstruction of medium and low-voltage networks, the reconstruction of substations and the introduction of smart metering in the territory covered by the company, the lender said in a statement.
The project will help Elektrokrajina implement operational improvements in the grid, in particular to reduce distribution losses through the reconstruction of medium and low-voltage networks and the introduction of advanced metering, the EBRD noted.
Moreover, the bank will engage with Elektrokrajina to perform a thorough corporate governance review and give recommendations to bring the company to best international standards in compliance with international norms and codes.
The lender's board is set to make a decision on the loan on September 7.
Elektrokrajina is 65%-owned by Elektroprivreda Republike Srpske (EPRS), the power utility of Bosnia's Serb Republic, one of the two autonomous entities that form Bosnia and Herzegovina.The other one is the Muslim-Croat Federation.
Bosnia has a further two power utilities - Elektroprivreda HZHB and Elektroprivreda BiH, the largest of the three, both based in the Federation.
($=0.8874 euro)