Timisoara becomes 53rd member of EBRD Green Cities urban sustainability programme European Union will provide €53.6 million grant for €87.2 million infrastructure programme The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will lend €20.3 million (or RON 100 million) to the Romanian city of Timisoara to co-finance, alongside the European Union (EU), key infrastructure projects for the period 2020-2023, the Bank informs. These include the renewal of its tram fleet and the rehabilitation of its T5 tram line, as well as two consultancies to support the City’s public transport reforms. The project will serve as Timisoara’s “trigger” investment, making it the 53rd member of the flagship EBRD Green Cities urban sustainability programme. The €5 billion EBRD Green Cities programme was set up in 2016. Under the programme, cities develop a Green City Action Plan (GCAP) to identify, prioritise and develop tailor-made solutions to their environmental and urban challenges. The GCAP will build on Timisoara’s pre-existing key objective to improve its public transport infrastructure and services, which is a pre-requisite for business and economic development in the region. This is in line with the EU’s Regional Operational Programme for Romania, targeting green and mobility investments. The proceeds of the Bank’s loan will be used to co-finance developing Timisoara’s tram infrastructure, alongside a €53.6 million grant from the EU. The total cost of the development will be €87.2, including national and local contributions and technical cooperation funds. The EBRD loan covers the financing gap for Timisoara’s priority infrastructure programme and will help the city introduce long-term sustainable urban planning, with a focus on green, resilience and mobility. Electric transport systems will not only increase mobility in the region but also improve life and environmental standards by promoting energy efficiency, reducing CO2 emissions and improving public transport quality. The project will save an estimated 22.2 per cent of current emissions, or up to 683 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, per year. Given Timisoara’s commitment to improving transport, the loan will also finance critical consultancies to update the City’s Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan and to support it in reorganising public transport. The EBRD is a long-term investor in Romania, where to date it has invested nearly €9.4 billion in 481 projects.
Amsterdam-based DRI, the EU renewables arm of Ukrainian energy company DTEK, announced the signing of the “largest physical solar power purchase agreement (PPA) in Romania” with OMV Petrom, the leading integrated energy producer in Southeastern Europe. The agreement groups three PPAs with OMV Petrom over an 8.5-year period for approximately 100GWh per year at a […]
Art Safari, the largest exhibition event dedicated to art in Romania, has announced its first 2025 edition, scheduled to take place from March 7 to July 27. The new season offers a program featuring anniversary retrospectives of Romanian art masters Ioan Andreescu and Ion Țuculescu, the exhibition Forgotten Painters – Hidden Treasures of Romanian Art, […]
Update: Crin Antonescu is the proposed presidential candidate of the coalition formed by PSD, PNL, UDMR, and national minorities, political leaders confirmed on Monday morning, December 23. Each party is set to confirm this endorsement through internal votes. “PNL has signed this coalition protocol to ensure our country has a stable government during challenging times […]
Crin Antonescu, the former leader of the Liberal Party (PNL) and interim president during Traian Băsescu's suspension in 2012, could become the joint candidate of the Social Democrats (PSD) and Liberals (PNL) in the presidential elections to be held in the spring. The only politician who has firmly announced his candidacy so far is the […]
The Social Democrats (PSD), Liberals (PNL), and Hungarian party UDMR were, at the end of December 22, close to agreeing over the share of the ministries in a joint cabinet to be appointed before the end of the year, such as to enact the quasi-austerity package of fiscal corrective measures already inked by the Ministry […]
Romania's gas consumption will increase by 10 billion cubic meters in the next 3-4 years, which practically means a doubling of current consumption, according to the National Gas System Development Plan 2024 - 2033 drafted by the operator of the country's gas transport system, Transgaz. The additional source of gas would come from the Black […]
