The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is considering a loan to Macedonia for work on a motorway that forms part of European Corridor 8.
The €110million (US$ 130.5 million) load would help construct a 10.7km section, including a tunnel, between Bukojcani and Kicevo.
Corridor 8 runs 1,500km from Durres in Albania to Varna in Bulgaria. It takes in Elbasan, the Macedonian capital Skopje, Pernik, the Bulgarian capital Sofia, Plovdiv, Burgas and finally the resort city of Varna on Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast.
In 2018, Macedonia opened a 28km motorway between Demir Kapija and Smokvica at a cost of €227 million.
The EBRD has had an long investment history of European Corridor roads within the Balkans. Recently in neighbouring Bosnia Hercegovina the national road agency Autoceste FBiH secured more funds - €869.2 million (US$1.05 billion) - for continued construction of the Corridor 5C motorway project.
FBiH has reported that 92km of Corridor 5C have been completed. The 700km Corridor 5c connects the Adriatic port of Ploce in Croatia with Budapest in Hungary via Bosnia which has around 340km of the route.
