Skip to main content

Financial setbacks beset Slovakia’s highway development

Slovakian highway company NDS says that construction of the 13km Turany-Hubova highway may not be started in 2012. The previous Transport Ministry plan was to call the tender for this stretch in summer 2012. However, the EC has not yet approved the construction of this highway, with questions surrounding the protected area in the Velka and Mala Fatra mountains. If Slovakia does not get this approval, the country might have to chose the second option, which includes the tunnel Korbelka. The EC's decision is
June 12, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
Slovakian highway company NDS says that construction of the 13km Turany-Hubova highway may not be started in 2012.

The previous Transport Ministry plan was to call the tender for this stretch in summer 2012. However, the EC has not yet approved the construction of this highway, with questions surrounding the protected area in the Velka and Mala Fatra mountains. If Slovakia does not get this approval, the country might have to chose the second option, which includes the tunnel Korbelka. The EC's decision is expected to be made by late 2012 or early 2013. Meanwhile work on the Visnove tunnel project depends on a loan from the 1054 European Investment Bank (EIB), as Slovakia does not have the money required. Should the EIB approve a loan, construction of the section of the D1 highway with the Visnove tunnel could start in 2012. The Transport Ministry has said that funding from the EIB could be used as a bridging loan because the ministry's current plans are for using EU funds only in the 2014-2020 budgetary period.

The value of the project is €900 million. The sum provided by the EIB will depend on the Transport Ministry's updated highway construction strategy. And should the Turany-Hubova section of the D1 motorway is built as a public-private partnership, the EIB and the 1166 European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) may participate. This would require all problems with environment protection to be solved for funding to be approved. At this stage it not possible to say when the whole D1 highway will be completed but it could be in 2018-2019 or even later.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Loan for Bosnia project
    June 25, 2012
    The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has granted a €150million sovereign-guaranteed loan for the construction of part of the new Banja Luka–Doboj motorway in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The loan-targeted motorway section is the main east–est link in Republika Srpska, one of the country’s entities. The EBRD said that it will also support the preparation of the first public–private partnership (PPP) project for the main north–south link in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Doboj to Vukosavlje seg
  • Near US$200m loan for Balkan motorway
    April 27, 2012
    The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has granted a US$198million (€150million) sovereign-guaranteed loan for the construction of part of the new Banja Luka-Doboj motorway in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The loan-targeted motorway section is the main east-west link in Republika Srpska, one of the country’s entities. The EBRD said it will also support the preparation of the first public-private partnership (PPP) project for the main north-south link in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Doboj to Vukosa
  • Corridor 10 project in Serbia may be delayed
    April 2, 2013
    A series of challenges are now facing the project to construct Serbia’s key Corridor 10 highway. The EU has asked the Serbian Government for details of the priority plan and deadlines for the completion of the Corridor 10 highway. At present three sections of Corridor 10 are at risk, due to delays and financing issues. These are the Ciflik-Pirot stretch, the Bancarevo tunnel and the Vladicin Han section. According to Serbian roads company Koridori Srbije, the construction schedule will be set by the end of
  • Karpaty Tunnel value-for-money scrutinised
    May 19, 2023
    The planned 12km Karpaty Tunnel under the Lesser Carpathian mounts of Slovakia is again being questioned as the government awaits an environmental impact assessment.