Chisinau City Hall, EIB sign lending agreement for purchasing 100 trolleybuses

The Chisinau City Hall and the European Investment Bank (EIB) on October 13 signed an agreement to provide the final tranche of the loan for buying 100 new trolleybuses for the capital city, Info-Prim Neo reports. “After two years of negotiations, we are now completing the final stage of the largest project to purchase new trolleybuses. This project will essentially contribute to the modernization of the public transport in the municipality of Chisinau. The new trolleybuses will fully meet the European standards,” Dorin Chirtoaca said. EIB Director for Eastern Europe Constantin Synadino said it is the fourth agreement signed with Moldova so far. He also said two more agreements will be signed in November, but did not give details. The investment in the 100 trolleybuses totals €13.7 million, including €0.7 million for technical assistance. €5 million represents the loan of the EIB, €5 million – the loan of the EBRD, while €3 million – a grant from the EU. The loans are repayable in 10 years, at an interest rate of 3.5%. The Chisinau Electric Transport Company owns 320 trolleybuses. The working life of 260 of them has expired.