The European Investment Bank (EIB) is lending €39 million to finance the ‘purchase of new rolling stock and implementation of infrastructure improvements for the light regional railway line connecting the south-western parts of Warsaw with neighbouring communes and smaller municipalities’.
The EIB loan will support the purchase of fourteen new Electrical Multiple Units, each with a maximum capacity of 500 passengers, of which 120 may be seated.
The project also covers various infrastructure improvements required for the new rolling stock to be used efficiently, i.e. track improvements, upgrading of the power supply, an improved passenger information and monitoring system, and the installation of a fibre optic cable.
The new rolling stock will almost entirely replace the existing fleet and the improvements will enable transport capacity to be increased by some 17% thanks to the higher speeds and reduced maintenance requirements of the new trains.
The borrower is Warsaw’s regional rail company (WKD), which signed a 15-year Public Service Contract for the provision of passenger rail services with the Mazowiecki region in 2009.
This will be further enhanced by a Support Agreement to be signed between the region, the EIB and WKD. The Public Service Contract and the Support Agreement provide the main security for the EIB loan.
