Moldova receives additional funding to improve rail infrastructure and advance Solidarity Lanes

The European Investment Bank has today signed a €41.2 million loan with Moldova, destined to improve internal transport connections as well as to provide long-term economic benefits to the wider region. This loan will be complemented by an EU grant of €12 million. 

Commissioner for Transport Adina Vălean said: “I welcome the signature of this loan that, together with the European Commission contribution of €12 million, will improve rail infrastructure in Moldova. Some 128 kilometres of track on the North-South axis will be renovated, with great benefits for the Moldovan economy. The project will also strengthen the Solidarity Lanes, where Moldova and Romania are the main actors on the Danube Corridor, ensuring the transit of almost 70% of the products exiting Ukraine.” 

The project will help reduce road congestion and increase environmental sustainability, in accordance with the EU's Global Gateway goals.

It will also strengthen the Solidarity Lanes, the alternative transport routes for Ukraine that have become a lifeline for Ukraine's economy. In addition to transporting Ukrainian grain (more than 58 million tonnes of cereals, oilseeds and related products since May 2022), they are the main option for Ukraine to export all of its other goods, and to import what it needs, such as fuel and humanitarian assistance. Today's decision will help strengthen the Danube corridor. 

(For more information: Adalbert Jahnz – Tel.: +32 2 295 31 56; Deborah Almerge – Tel.: +32 2 298 79 86)