August 19 (SeeNews) - The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is considering providing a loan to Bulgarian majority state-owned Vratsa Water Supply and Sanitation Company for financing part of a 23.9 million euro ($26.5 million) project for water infrastructure upgrades, the bank said.
The project envisages rehabilitation of over 54 km of water distribution pipes and 26 km of sewerage network, acquisition of new equipment for a sewage pumping station and construction of 15 new water metering shafts, 5 pressure-reducing valves chambers and two storage sites for sludge, the EBRD said in a statement last week.
The considered loan will amount to 3 million euro, of which 1.5 million euro will be funded by the EBRD. The other 1.5 million euro will be provided by the European Structural and Investment Funds (ESIF) and Bulgaria's national budget. The ESIF financial resources are managed by the EBRD and the Fund Manager of Financial Instruments in Bulgaria under an agreement signed in October 2018.
Vratsa Water Supply and Sanitation Company services 10 municipalities in northwest Bulgaria, comprising 8 towns and 115 villages, with a total population of some 172,000 people. The company is 51% state-owned and 49% municipally-owned.
($ = 0.9005 euro)