The European Investment Bank (EIB) is lending CZK 2 billion (approx. EUR 78 million) to the Moravia-Silesia Region (north-east part of the Czech Republic) to improve regional infrastructure.
The EIB loan will co-finance, together with the EU Structural Funds, the implementation of priority schemes identified by the Regional Operational Programme for Moravia-Silesia and other sectoral Operational Programmes for the 2007-2013 period. EIB funds will also support investment in transport, health and social care, education, culture and tourism, the environment, and information and communication technologies. These investments are included in the Regional Development Plan which defines the Region’s capital expenditure programme and the corresponding financing plan and use of the Region’s own resources.
Amongst the various sub-projects that have been identified, the EIB loan will partly finance, for example, the bypass of the city of Opava, the modernisation of civil engineering schools and development of electrical engineering education centres, and the purchase of emergency rescue vehicles.
This is the second EIB loan provided to the Moravia-Silesia Region. In 2005 the Bank signed a first EUR 37 million finance contract to support small-scale regional infrastructure schemes co-financed by the EU Structural Funds in the transport, culture and social care sectors.
Background:
The EIB, the European Union’s bank, finances economically viable investment projects that contribute towards the integration, balanced development and economic and social cohesion of the EU Member States.
The EIB supports the development of Czech regions and municipalities by improving their access to long-term finance provided on favourable terms. Since 2005, the Bank has provided loans to seven Czech regions and six cities besides the capital city of Prague, amounting to some EUR 1.2 billion, including the current loan.