As part of the IPA pre-accession fund for the 2007-2009 period, the Ministry of the Sea, Tourism, Transport and Development has proposed a transport operational plan envisaging a EUR 190 million project for the modernisation of the Zagreb-Okucani railroad as well as the drawing up of project documentation for advancing navigation along the Sava river and for building the Vukovar River Port.
The government and the European Commission are expected to approve the operational plan in September, assistant minister Mate Jurisic said at the presentation of the plan last Wednesday. The aim is to have 75% of the projects financed from non-repayable IPA funds and 25% from domestic sources.
The Zagreb-Okucani railroad is part of the tenth pan-European corridor and EUR 17.5 million will be invested in renovating signalling devices at Zagreb's central station. Another EUR 36 million will be invested in renovating the rail section from Okucani to Novska, while EUR 135 million will be invested in modernising the section from Novska to Dugo Selo.
Works at Zagreb's Central Station are expected to be completed by the end of 2010, the Okucani-Novska section by the end of 2011 and the Novska-Dugo Selo section by the end of 2013. The head of the ministry's Internal Navigation Department, Neven Grubisic, said the ministry had suggested that the European Commission co-finance from IPA funds the improvement of the Sava waterway and the construction of the Vukovar East river port. (Hina)