Director of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in BiH Giulio Moreno, RS Finance Minister Zoran Tegeltija, Mayor of Bijeljina Municipality Mićo Mičić and Auto-Putevi RS Director Dušan Topić signed on Tuesday grant agreements for the construction of a sewerage system in Bijeljina Municipality, phase II, and for the Mahovljani Interchange. 

The agreement was signed in the presence of representatives of the Delegation of the European Union and the Swedish Embassy, as well as representatives of the RS Government and Bijeljina Municipality.

“Today we discussed funding of around 8. 5 million Euros from IPA funds, but over the next two years the European Union will provide around 90 million Euros for different infrastructure projects,” said Boris Iarochevitch, Charge d’ Affairs at the EU Delegation. Iarochevitch stressed that EU funds will be used parallel to loans from different international financial institutions.

“We also support projects for environmental protection, but we are especially interested in infrastructure projects: construction of highways and railways,” Iarochevitch said, noting that the Euroean Union has a new three-year strategy, from 2011 to 2013, which includes valuable infrastructure projects.

Giulio Moreno Director pf the EBRD in BiH expressed his appreciation to the European Union for providing grants for the projects in Bijeljina and Mahovljani, worth 11.5 million Euros, and 500,000 Euros for project documentation.

“Without these grants, the EBRD could not finance these projects,” he said. “Investment worth 21 million Euros is now projected for Mahovljani and 12 million Euros for Bijeljina. The project in Mahovljani has been progressing very well and the first phase in Bijeljina has already been completed.”

Moreno stressed that the EBRD is fully committed to supporting the development of the infrastructure and utilities sectors in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

“I have talked today with RS Prime Minister Aleksandar Džombić and RS Traffic Minister Nedeljko Čubrilović about the possibility of financing the Banja Luka-Doboj highway as well as energy projects related to hydropower plants in the RS, the development of heating systems, and the management of solid waste,” he said.

Anders Hedlund, Counsellor at the Swedish Embassy said the Swedish Government, which provided 4 million Euros for the construction of sewerage system in Bijeljina, recently adopted a four-year strategy for assistance to Bosnia and Herzegovina.

“A very important new element of the strategy is related to environmental protection,” said Hedlund.

RS Prime Minister Džombić said that EU donor funds for the collector in Bijeljina amount to 10 million Euros, while the grant for the Mahovljani Interchange is worth 5 million Euros and that the EBRD has provided guarantees for these funds. 

“The EBRD has given the RS a loan worth 12 million Euros for Bijeljina Municipality and 21 million Euros for the Mahovljani Interchange,” he said.