3.2 bln euro loans at interest rates of up to 3%

TIRANA, July 19 – The interest rate of the 3.2 billion euros of loans government has recently approved on infrastructure projects will not be higher than 3 percent. This is confirmed by Suzana Guxholli, the Prime Minister’s economic advisor who told reporters last weekend that a considerable number of loans will be disbursed starting from this year to finance ongoing infrastructural projects.
Guxholli said the loans will be used to finance some of the country’s most important road and energy projects.
“The loans government has secured from foreign financial institutions at interest rates of 1 to 3 percent show their confidence in the Albanian economy,” said the advisor.
Government says it will borrow from the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) to finance the Tirana-Elbasan highway, a hub to southern Albania and one of the main segments of the Corridor 8 project.
According to Guxholli, the Tirana-Elbasan highway, considered government’s major infrastructural project during this term of office, will start construction within this year as soon as 300 million are disbursed by EIB and IDB.
OPEC Fund and the EBRD and the Japanese government will also support Albania’s secondary and rural road reconstruction.