NW 17:26:01 13-07-2021
MY1728NW.118
118 ECONOMY - SOFIA AIRPORT MODERNISATION - EIB LOAN

European Investment Bank
Provides EUR 40 Mln Loan
for Modernisation of Sofia Airport


Luxembourg/Sofia, July 13 (BTA) - The European Investment Bank (EIB) and SOF Connect AD, a special purpose vehicle that is majority-owned by Meridiam, have signed a 40 million euro loan agreement for the modernisation of Sofia International Airport. The financing is supported by the European Commission's Connecting Europe Facility (CEF), the EIB said on Tuesday.

The EIB financing will support infrastructure modernisation and the upgrade of regulatory, safety and security components to the latest standards. In addition, the project will improve the efficiency of airport facilities, including energy efficiency components, and ensure state-of-the-art environmental protection.

Sofia International Airport belongs to the core Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) in a cohesion region. It is among the busiest airports in the Balkans and one of the largest in Central and Eastern Europe, with passenger numbers doubling between 2013 and 2019. The Republic of Bulgaria has awarded a 35-year concession for the development, upgrade, maintenance, management and operation of the airport.

The EIB loan is fully in line with the EIB Climate Bank Roadmap, which was approved in November 2020. The roadmap excludes EIB financing for investments in airport capacity expansion and instead focuses on improving existing airport capacity, including safety, security, modernisation and decarbonisation investments. RY/MY/МЙ/