China Eximbank pledges loan for two highway construction projects

China Eximbank pledges loan for two highway construction projects On Dec 28, 2012, China Road and Bridge Corporation (CRBC) signed a preliminary agreement with Serbian Ministry of Regional Development and Local Self-Government to build two regional highways in the country.

The two projects, a 110-kilometer motorway with six lanes from Pojate to Preljina and a 27-kilometer motorway with four lanes from Novi Sad to Ruma are valued at 642 million Euros (about 850 million U.S. dollars).

The works will be financed by the China Exim Bank under very favorable conditions - payment period of 20-years, grace period of five years, and a maximum interest rate of 2.5 percent.

It is said that the timeframe for the construction of the Morava corridor is 4-years, and for the Novi Sad-Ruma highway 30 months.

It has been envisaged that the Serbian firms will have a 45 percent share in realization of the projects, and the average cost per kilometer will be EUR 4.72 million. Loan applications and disbursements are still being received and processed as the projects continue to evolve. Ongoing monitoring and evaluation are in place to ensure project continuity.