The European Investment Bank (EIB), the European Union's financing institution, is lending EUR 140 million (FRF 920 m) (1) to the Port Autonome du Havre (PAH) to support implementation of the first phase of the "Port 2000" investment programme for developing container traffic facilities. 

The finance contract is being formally signed in Le Havre on 23 November by Mr Jean-Pierre Lecomte, Chairman of PAH's Board of Directors, Mr Jean-Marc Lacave, Managing Director of PAH and Mr Francis Mayer, EIB Vice-President, in the presence of Mr Michel Barnier, European Commissioner for Regional Development, Mr Antoine Rufenacht, Mayor of Le Havre, Mr Alain Le Vern, Chairman of the Regional Council of Haute-Normandie, Mr Charles Revet, Chairman of the General Council of Seine-Maritime, Mr Bruno Fontenaist, Prefect of the Haute-Normandie Region and Mr Alain Gille, Director of Maritime Transport, Ports and Coastal Areas.

The works being financed, intended for new-generation container ships, consist, in an initial phase, of the creation of six new berths, four or which will be commissioned in 2004 and the other two in early 2006, development of new containerised goods storage areas, construction of a new access channel and breakwater, as well as upgrading of land transport links. In the medium term, they will double the capacity of the container terminals at the Port of Le Havre.

These installations will enable the Port of Le Havre to maintain its position on a highly competitive market as an international hub for container traffic, the most dynamic segment of the ports sector. Together with other, equally large-scale investment financed by private operators, the measures are not confined to infrastructure, but also include the extension of related services, thus providing first-class freight transit/transhipment facilities. 

The project will have positive spin-offs for the regional economy, especially as a result of the expansion of logistics and transport activities and the introduction of new IT systems.

"Port 2000" has attracted particular attention from an environmental viewpoint. Following a public consultation, and in cooperation with a team of independent experts and the Ministry for the Environment, major accompanying measures totalling EUR 45 m (FRF 300 m) have been established to support the biological regeneration of the Seine Estuary, enhance the ecological interest of the Natural Reserve and rehabilitate the tidal flats. Other ecological initiatives are designed to mitigate the impact of the new port installations on the "Birds" and "Habitat" protected areas in the estuary. 

In addition, by improving PAH's rail and waterway access infrastructure, "Port 2000" will result in a significant boost to the share of port traffic carried by these two modes of transport. 

Located in a regional development area (Objective 2) and included in the list of Trans-European Port Networks, "Port 2000" is attracting public-sector support (State, local authorities) and an EUR 38 million (FRF 250 million) contribution from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). The EIB's involvement therefore represents additional banking support on a very long-term basis, consistent with the scale of this investment which is particularly significant for the regional economy and for the competitiveness of Le Havre on the Northern European seaboard. At a subsequent stage, this loan may be increased by further EIB finance up to the total amount approved for this project by the Bank's Board of Directors, namely EUR 280 million. 

(1) 1 EUR = 6.55957 FRF