Monetisation is a procedure whereby motorways would be leased for management and not sold, the government said on Friday, explaining its decision to opt for the concession model as the best solution to repay the loans taken out to build motorways.
The government said its objective was to get a one-off concession payment to repay the loans of the HAC and ARZ motorway operators. It said EUR 2 billion in capital was due for payment over the next three years and that EUR 4 billion in total had to be repaid by 2039.
If we repay the debt through rescheduling, as was done until now by taking out new loans, we would have to repay at least EUR 8 billion with interest over the next 25 years, the government said.
Motorways are under concession already and the concession holders, the HAC and ARZ companies, cannot repay their loans from their revenues which total HRK 1.9 billion annually, the government said, adding that this year, with regular motorway maintenance costs and loan repayment, the two companies had to set aside HRK 9 billion.
The government said monetisation was assessed as the best loan repayment model and that the goal was to earn enough to repay the loan debts due this and in the next three years, EUR 2 billion. This would help to save HRK 30 billion on interest over a period of 35-40 years.
The government reiterated that the motorways were not being sold off, saying that "motorway users will not feel a difference in service quality or safety if the concessionaire changes. We will continue to be the owners of the motorways we are leaving to future generations."
On Saturday, a civil group will begin collecting signatures for a referendum against motorway monetisation.
(EUR 1 = HRK 7.6)
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