As part of a €2 billion resilience package for Ukraine and neighbouring countries affected by the war, the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has repurposed part of an existing loan to provide €50 million of liquidity to UkrZaliznytsya (UZ), Ukraine’s railway company known in English as Ukrainian Railways. The aim is to help ensure adequate financing of UZ’s needs and to keep trains running as the country grapples with invasion by Russia.
The EBRD originally agreed to lend €150 million to UZ, the monopoly provider of rail transportation in Ukraine, to upgrade and electrify one section of the country’s nearly 20,000 km of railway and related infrastructure. That loan has yet to be disbursed.
The war that has followed Russia’s invasion on 24 February has triggered urgent liquidity needs that prompted the repurposing of the funds. UZ needs to ensure continued and uninterrupted provision of essential cargo and passenger transportation and evacuation services critical for the affected population, as well as for the broader economy and functioning of the private sector.
The European Union’s European Fund for Sustainable Development (EFSD) is expected to support the project as part of a common programme with the EBRD that focuses on municipal, infrastructure and industrial resilience in the European Neighbourhood East and European Neighbourhood South. In partnership with the European Union, EBRD makes a contribution to Ukrainian Railways for the continued running of this critical service. The financing will support the movement of goods and people, including displaced persons, and help maintain Ukraine’s trade links with the outside world. In addition, with donors and partners, the EBRD has pledged to invest €1 billion this year in supporting the Ukrainian economy.
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