Skip to main content

Poland's highway plans to go ahead

In Poland, the European Investment Bank has committed itself to maintaining its loan agreement for the A1 highway, despite recent problems over the project. The e1.1 billion loan that the EIB had agreed with Autostrada Poludnie for construction of a 180km section of the A1 highway from Strykow to Pyrzowice, will now be placed at the disposal of the Polish highway authorities. To carry out the work, Poland has to raise a further e503 million, which could be obtained from an issue of road bonds. Autostrada Po
May 15, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
In Poland, the 1054 European Investment Bank has committed itself to maintaining its loan agreement for the A1 highway, despite recent problems over the project. The €1.1 billion loan that the EIB had agreed with Autostrada Poludnie for construction of a 180km section of the A1 highway from Strykow to Pyrzowice, will now be placed at the disposal of the Polish highway authorities. To carry out the work, Poland has to raise a further €503 million, which could be obtained from an issue of road bonds. Autostrada Poludnie was in charge of the A1 investment but failed to complete necessary financing as a result of the difficult financial trading conditions and lost its concession. This follows the bitter disagreement between Austrian contractor 2859 Alpine and the General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways (1361 GDDKiA) over another section of the highway, now being dealt with in a legal tussle.

Meanwhile the EIB is providing a loan to 3533 Autostrada Wielkopolska, which is building a 106km section of Poland’s A2 highway from Swiecko to Nowy Tomysl. The EIB is allowing Autostrada Wielkopolska to take €142 million from a loan worth a total of €1 billion. The EIB agreed to extend the deadline to allow environmental issues for the project to be dealt with. This will allow the project to be completed by 2012 as originally planned.

And a new deal has been struck for a 21km section of the A4 highway.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Poland bidders angry over Astaldi win for Warsaw Ring Road work
    June 18, 2015
    Four groups that made bids for building the southern section of the Warsaw Ring Road have filed complaints about how the national road authority GDDKiA chose Astaldi as the winner. Companies appealing to the National Board of Appeal (KIO) are Impresa Pizzarotti, Porr Polska, Salini Polska and IDS-BUD. The offer made by Italian company Astaldi was at least 25% less than the estimated €391 million cost of the project, according to Polish media reports. World Highways reported in February that Astaldi
  • Poland's highway projects benefit from EU funds
    May 15, 2012
    Since 1990 loans worth a total of €10 billion have been granted by the EIB for Polish road projects, with some 20% of the loans going to private companies. During 2010, the EIB will be lending some €2.79 billion for Polish road projects.
  • Poland awards three Expressway S19 sections
    March 11, 2017
    The Polish General Directorate for National Roads and Motorways – GDDKiA –reports that 14 bids have been received for construction of three sections of the S19 dual carriageway. A consortium formed by Pizzarotti and Fundamental Infrastructure pitched the lowest bid for the Krasnik Poludnie - Janow Lubelski Polnoc section, amounting to nearly €80 million. The lowest offer for the construction of the second section – a ring-road around the town of Janow Lubelski – was just over €34 million and made by M
  • Polish project causes further legal headaches
    February 28, 2012
    The long tale of woe concerning Poland's troubled A2 highway project looks set to continue with the latest developments in the case.