• EIB and HBOR sign EUR 50 million agreement to upgrade Rijeka Clinical Centre, a major hospital and an university training facility, servicing around 600,000 people or 15% of population of Croatia;
  • Rijeka Clinical Centre will also be able to start relocating its buildings currently scattered across the city on a single location, improving the quality of health care and efficiency of its operations;
  • EUR 292.5 million EIB loan available for companies in industry, services and tourism sectors, as well as municipalities and public sector for infrastructure, knowledge economy, energy and environment project; this is a second tranche of the EUR 400 million loan to HBOR;
  • Medium- and long-term finances to strengthen productivity and competitiveness of Croatian companies and create new jobs, especially for youth

Support for Rijeka Clinical Center – Improving healthcare for 600,000 people

Around 600,000 citizens of Croatia gravitating around the nation`s third largest city of Rijeka will see their Clinical Centre and University Hospital improved as a result of EUR 50 million loan signed today between the European Investment Bank and Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and Development (HBOR).

The project will allow construction of a modern Mother and Child Care Unit, a new thermal power block and a new parking lot, which will relieve the patients from having to travel up to five kilometres between different hospital facilities of the Rijeka Clinical Centre.

The project will also be an important step in relocation of the hospital units, scattered across the city, into a single location. Patients, medical and teaching staff at Rijeka Clinical Centre can expect better comfort, increased quality of services, and numerous technological and clinical updates from this loan. Hundreds of thousands of European citizens and other nationals, taking their holidays at the Adriatic coast and islands around Rijeka, will also benefit from this loan and the improved healthcare infrastructure it will enable.

Added value from partnering with the EIB

During the preparation of the loan, the Rijeka Clinical Centre received technical assistance support from the EIB, through the European Investment Advisory Hub to develop its Strategic Facilities Plan. It is a pivotal element for a sustainable development and financing of a hospital in the European Union. The document endows the Rijeka Clinical Centre with a strategic overview of its situation and allows the hospital to plan for new development projects more efficiently.

EIB Vice President Dario Scannapieco said: “EIB is delighted every time it can support to a project that has a tangible positive effect on the lives of the people like this one. Relocation of medical institutions on to a single location will make lives easier for hundreds of thousands of Croatian citizens and medical and teaching personnel in Rijeka Clinical Centre. Moreover, through its advisory hub, EIAH, EIB supported the KBC Rijeka to develop a long-term strategy for its future development. This is the kind of extra benefit only EIB can offer. I would like to thank HBOR for giving us an opportunity to be a part of an important episode in the life of Rijeka!”

President of the Management Board of the Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and Development (HBOR) Tamara Perko said: “Investment in Rijeka Clinical Center will have a direct positive effect on 600,000 people living around Rijeka and hundreds of thousands of people who spend their holidays in this part of Croatia. I am very pleased we have a chance to be a part of this investment which is a perfect example of the role HBOR and EIB have – to create added value for our citizens.”

Deputy Chief Financial Officer of the Rijeka Clinical Center Marko Slemensek said: “I am confident that the beginning of the construction of new medical and auxiliary building is one of the most important events for the city of Rijeka and Primorsko-goranska County in this decade.  The construction marks the beginning of the second phase of our project "Hospital under a single roof", which will enable patients from Rijeka, the Primorsko-Goranska County and neighbouring counties to provide top-notch medical care and at a single place. With the technical assistance of the EIB and their experts, we managed to define the long-term investment horizon and formulate a comprehensive business plan for our Hospital. We would like to thank the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Finance, the European Investment Bank and the Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and Development for their support.”

Mid-Caps, Municipalities and Public Companies to accelerate economic growth and create jobs

Croatian Mid-Cap companies, one of the backbones of the local economy, as well as municipalities and public companies will have EUR 292.5 million available from the second tranche of the European Investment Bank loan to Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and Development (HBOR).

One part of the loan will support Croatian Mid-Cap companies form industry, services and tourism sectors to increase productivity and competitiveness, both on local and European markets. The other part will allow municipalities and public companies in Croatia to invest in infrastructure, knowledge economy, energy, and environment investments.

The loan agreement signed between the EIB and HBOR will contribute to sustainable economic growth and creation of new jobs in Croatia, especially for youth, by providing a more affordable medium- and long-term funding, otherwise difficult to find on the local financial market.

Additional support from EIB and HBOR will be available to those Mid-Caps able to document that their investment project contributes to the creation of youth as this operation falls under EIB`s “Jobs for Youth Initiative”. The initiative fosters youth employment programmes in the EU promoted by the public sector, such as investment in educational facilities, operational expenditures of vocational training, student loan schemes and young employee mobility programmes initiatives.

EIB Vice President Dario Scannapieco said: “EIB supports faster economic growth and employment in Croatia and this loan is another proof of our commitment to contribute towards prosperity of Croatian citizens by supporting faster growth of their national economy. The loan we signed with HBOR today will strengthen a key pillar of the local economy – the Mid-Caps – and allow them to be more competitive, produce and offer more and in turn employ more people. The loan will also address the evident need of Croatian public sector entities for affordable loans and allow improvements in infrastructure, knowledge economy, energy and environment. EIB is very happy we found a reliable, efficient and a trusted ally in HBOR with whom we can work effectively on these important tasks for Croatia and the EU.”

President of the Management Board of the Croatian Bank for Reconstruction and Development (HBOR) Tamara Perko said: “I am very happy for HBOR to be recognized as a reliable partner by our colleagues at the EIB. We have been cooperating for 18 years and to date HBOR supported more than 3700 public and private projects with EIB support. The agreement we signed today will enable further long-term and favourable lending to investments that are a prerequisite for the economic development of Croatia and key to increased competitiveness and growth of the Croatian economy, as well as preservation of existing and creation of new jobs.”