The EBRD is supporting further modernisation of rail operations in Serbia with a €100 million sovereign guaranteed loan to the Serbian state-owned railway company Zeleznice Srbije to finance the upgrade of Corridor X rail and the purchase of locomotives.

Corridor X is the primary transport route in Serbia, running on a north-south axis and connecting major and secondary urban centres by road and rail, including the three largest cities – Belgrade, Novi Sad and Nis.

The EBRD loan will be used to renew over 111 km of track on Corridor X, to purchase track maintenance machinery and to acquire 15 new electric locomotives, which will replace outdated cars for freight services.

The investment will assist Zeleznice Srbije in raising the quality and efficiency of passenger and freight services on rail Corridor X, reducing maintenance costs and improving energy efficiency.

The project, supported by €650,000 in technical assistance grants from the Central European Initiative, German government and the Bank’s Shareholder Special Fund, will also support Zeleznice Srbije in its restructuring process, implementation of this project and the development of various energy efficiency initiatives.

“This project is a continuation of the EBRD’s support to the modernisation of Serbian Railways, and we are delighted to sign this new financing on Serbia’s National Rail Day. The funds will support much needed upgrades to the rail infrastructure, helping to raise the standards of transport services in Serbia”, said Thomas Maier, EBRD Managing Director for Infrastructure.

“This is a very important day for Serbian Railways and we are pleased that we can mark it with the signing of this financing agreement with the EBRD, which will allow this railway company to effectively compete, through the provision of efficient transport services, throughout the region”, added the General Manager of Zeleznice Srbije, Milovan Markovic.

This is the EBRD’s fourth financing extended to Zeleznice Srbije. In total, including the latest loan, the Bank provided over €300 million for the modernisation of Serbian railways.

Since the beginning of its operations in Serbia, the EBRD has committed over €2.2 billion in various sectors of the Serbian economy, mobilising additional investment in excess of €2.7 billion.