Ukraine to use 182 mln euros of EBRD loan to upgrade road section on border with Poland

MOSCOW. Sept 5 (Interfax) - The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is reallocating 182 million euros of an existing sovereign loan to the State Agency for the Restoration and Development of Infrastructure of Ukraine, formerly known as the State Road Agency of Ukraine, to upgrade a section of road on Ukraine's border with Poland, Ukrainian media reported, quoting an EBRD press release.

It said the Ukrainian government is seeking the reallocation of existing funds to the financing of repairs of the section of road between Lvov and Rava-Ruska. This is the main route connecting Lvov to Warsaw and part of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T), on which traffic intensity has increased significantly. Disruption to trade via Black Sea ports has caused the redirection of traffic flows to land routes in western Ukraine that connect to the European Union, according to the press release.

The road repairs will enhance existing transport links between Ukraine and its EU neighbors and facilitate the export and import of vital goods, including agricultural exports, the EBRD said.

The EBRD had originally agreed to provide a 450 million euros sovereign loan to be on-lent to the then State Road Agency of Ukraine in December 2020 to build major highways in the country around Kyiv, Odesa and Lvov.

The EBRD has financed road rehabilitation projects in Ukraine for a total of 1.2 billion euros over the last 20 years.