The Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations today officially informed the National IPA Coordinator, Mr. Maričić, about the three projects that were approved on 30 June 2023 at the meeting of the Operational Board of the Western Balkans Investment Framework.
- Energy Efficiency Project in the Public Sector. The grant is in the amount of EUR 2.2 million and the total investment of EUR 27.5 million is supported by a loan from the World Bank.
- Strengthening the Electricity Transmission Network in the South-East Region. The grant is in the amount of EUR 8 million and the total investment of EUR 34.7 million is supported by a loan from the EBRD.
- Corridor 8 Construction of Slopes on the Expressway Kriva Palanka Stracin. The grant is in the amount of EUR 14 million and the total investment of EUR 36.7 million is supported by a loan from the World Bank.
The approved project packages also include the regional project for Safe and Secure Transport in the amount of 80 million euros. The total investment is around 494.8 million euros in a loan from the World Bank. This project will finance the project for the establishment of an Intelligent Transport System of the Ministry of Transport and Communications, which is estimated at around 12 million euros and a total investment of 27.7 million euros.
DG NEAR also submitted the details of the criteria for the new 9th call for investment grants within the Western Balkans Investment Framework. This call is limited to railway projects only. The deadline for submitting a pre-notification is 18 August 2023 and the deadline for a full application is 8 September 2023.
According to the criteria of this call, countries can apply with projects for the rehabilitation of the existing and construction of new sustainable and smart infrastructure on the main and extended TEN-T railway network.
The maximum amount of co-financing from the Western Balkans Investment Framework is 50% of the total investment and the remaining funds should be provided by loans from International Financial Institutions in accordance with the rules for the implementation of the Western Balkans Investment Framework. New applications under this call should be provided in the Single Project List https://portal.mdt.gov.mk/post-documents/investiciska-ramka-za-zapaden-balkan-document-FUbe.pdf
More details on the preparation of applications are available on the Western Balkans Investment Framework website at the following link https://www.wbif.eu/about/how-apply-wbif-grant.