November 27 (SeeNews) - Hungary's foreign minister Peter Szijjarto has said the country plans to invest 550 billion forints ($2.1 billion/1.77 billion euro) in the overhaul of the 152 km-long Hungarian stretch of the Belgrade-Budapest railway line.
The Hungarian economy ministry has agreed on a 20-year loan from Export-Import Bank of China (EXIM Bank) with an interest rate of 2.5%, which will cover up to 86% of the project cost, Szijjarto said, according to a Hungarian government statement issued on Sunday.
"As a result of the project, the Budapest-Belgrade railway line will provide the most competitive alternative for Chinese goods compared to other railway lines," Szijjarto said.
Tendering for the project will last between six and twelve months, to be followed by a two-year planning and permitting stage, meaning construction works should begin in late 2020, the Hungarian government said.
Earlier this year, the Hungarian government started preparations for the construction of a high-speed rail link between Budapest and Romania's Cluj-Napoca. It will represent the first phase of a high-speed railway line connecting Budapest to Romania's Bucharest.
China, Serbia and Hungary signed a memorandum of understanding for the reconstruction of the 370-km Belgrade-Budapest railway line in December 2014.
(1 euro = 311.219 Hungarian forints)