Finance minister Alexandru Nazare signed the financing agreement worth 500 million euros with the European Investment Bank (EIB), intended for the construction of the A1 Sibiu-Pitesti Motorway, the Ministry of Finance informs on Wednesday.

This is Romania’s most important road infrastructure project and the first motorway to cross the Carpathian Mountains.

The project is part of the core trans-European transport network (TEN-T) and the General Transport Master Plan of Romania. The main objectives of the investment are: increasing the efficiency of the transport network, reducing travel times, improving road safety and better connecting the regions of Romania to European transport networks.

„The Sibiu-Pitesti Motorway is a strategic priority at national level and a project of European importance, which will stimulate investments and generate new jobs. The benefits will be felt directly in the economy and in the daily lives of citizens, through safer roads and faster connections. The partnership with the European Investment Bank, based on a long-term collaboration, offers us advantageous financing agreements and the necessary support to complete this major objective,” said Alexandru Nazare, minister of finance, quoted in the press release.

The total value of the Sibiu-Pitesti Motorway project is estimated at approximately 5.5 billion euros. The financing comes from several sources: non-reimbursable external funds through the Large Infrastructure Operational Programme 2014-2020 and the Transport Programme 2021-2027 (approximately 1.83 billion euros), the state budget and loans granted by the European Investment Bank (EIB). According to EIB estimates, the total value of the project, including VAT, reaches 6.716 billion euros.

The Sibiu-Pitesti Motorway project started in March 2020 and is estimated to be completed by the fourth quarter of 2028. The Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure coordinates the entire process, and the implementation is carried out by the National Company for Road Infrastructure Administration (CNAIR).

The project expenses, equivalent to the loan amounts, will be included in the budget of the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure/CNAIR, respecting the annual allocations from the state budget. The Ministry of Finance will make the withdrawals from the EIB loan, according to the financing agreement, and the money will be used to finance the budget deficit and refinance public debt, according to the law.

The announcement of the EIB loan was made during the visit to Romania of vice-presidents Ioannis Tsakiris and Robert de Groot, who discussed with Romanian officials financing priorities for sustainable investment and economic growth. AGERPRES