Government approves loans for three rail companies

The Croatian government decided on Wednesday to launch the procedure for the conclusion of a guarantee agreement and for the granting of approval for loan agreements between three companies within the national rail operator Hrvatske Zeljeznice (HZ) and the International Bank of Reconstruction and Development (IBRD).

The government approved a EUR 79 million loan for HZ Infrastruktura, a EUR 41.5 million loan for HZ Cargo and a EUR 43 million loan for HZ Putnicki Prijevoz (Passenger Transport). The loans will be used for restructuring, optimising the number of employees and increasing the effectiveness of operations of the three companies.

The Minister of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure, Sinisa Hajdas Doncic, said that the loans would be granted at an interest rate of less than one per cent and with a grace period of three years. He said that 40 per cent of the total amount of the loans would be used for the retroactive financing of loans with an average interest rate exceeding 5%.

As a result, in the case of HZ Infrastruktura the amount saved will be HRK 68 million, in the case of HZ Cargo that amount will be HRK 74 million and in the case of HZ Putnicki Prijevoz HRK 68 million will be saved, the minister said.

The loans will be used for financing the "Sustainable Croatian Railways in Europe" project. Hajdas Doncic said that as part of this project money would be secured for 50 level crossings.

The decisions adopted today are based on the draft project for the sustainable development of the Croatian rail sector, which the government adopted in late January and which provides for a loan of one billion kuna to optimise the number of employees and ensure technological modernisation of the rail network.

(Hina) vm

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