The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has announced that it is supporting improved access to water and wastewater services in Romania’s Hunedoara County by extending a EUR 14 million loan to SC Apa Prod SA, the county’s water and wastewater services provider.
According to a statement, the loan will be provided to co-finance the investment alongside the European Union (EU) under its Sustainable Development Operational Programme for Romania.
The financing follows 10 earlier loans to Romanian counties under the EBRD’s Sustainable Water Infrastructure Facility to Support Transition (SWIFT), which builds on the Bank’s long-term work to improve services and help bring the sector in line with EU laws, policies, and practices.
To date, the EBRD has financed 25 water operators in Romania, providing a total of almost EUR 600 million in loans alongside over EUR 5 billion of EU funding for the country’s water and wastewater facilities.
The EBRD’s investment, alongside EU funds, will enable SC Apa Prod SA to complete a EUR 230 million investment program. This will rehabilitate and expand the county’s water and wastewater infrastructure, in line with EU standards.
As a result, some 170,000 residents in 33 localities will benefit from increased access to water and wastewater treatment services.
SC Apa Prod SA is also set to benefit from these investments, as improvements in water and wastewater infrastructure will significantly reduce water losses and increase connection rates to water and wastewater networks by 2028.
SC Apa Prod SA, a client of the EBRD since 2014, has invested more than EUR 140 million in waste and wastewater infrastructure.
It has also been implementing a comprehensive programme of substantial real-term tariff increases and inflation adjustments, together with a broad range of operational and financial performance improvement measures.
The EBRD is a leading institutional investor in Romania. To date, the Bank has invested over EUR 12 billion in 573 projects across the country.
