Talks on a trade and transport integration project in the southern Croatian Adriatic port of Ploče and a 58.8 million euros World Bank loan for the project, held from 5 to 7 September between the Croatian government, the Ploče port authority and the World Bank, were completed successfully on Thursday with the signing of the minutes of negotiations, the World Bank office in Croatia said.
The minutes were signed by the State Secretary at the Croatian Ministry of the Sea, Tourism, Transport and Development, Branko Bačić, Ploče Port Executive Director Tomislav Batur and Task Team Leader Gerald Ollivier.
The signing of the minutes marks the completion of preparations for the project which took only one year, after Finance Minister Ivan Šuker and the head of the World Bank regional office for Croatia, Bulgaria and Romania, Annand Seth, signed an agreement on funds needed to prepare the project.
The Croatian government is expected to accept the loan in the next two months and the loan will then be submitted to the World Bank Board of Executive Directors for approval.
The project was prepared by the Ministry and the Port of Ploče, with support from the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
The project is aimed at developing trade along corridor Vc by improving the capacity, efficiency and quality of transport services, with a particular focus on the port and coordination among all corridor participants in Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
The integration of trade and transport (ITT) project includes the construction of a bulk cargo terminal and a multipurpose container terminal and a system for the integration of information flows within the port and along the corridor. The entire project is estimated at 91 million euros, and it is financed by the World Bank with 58.8 million, the EBRD with 11.2 million, and the government and the port authority.
The Ploče port is the second biggest Croatian port and it has seen a significant traffic increase, mostly because of industrial reconstruction in the neighboring Bosnia-Herzegovina.
Ploče Port Executive Director Batur told Hina that the loan agreement, if accepted by the Croatian government, should be signed in November.
The World Bank office in Croatia has announced for October the identification of a new transport project in Rijeka, called Rijeka Gateway Project II.