Funded by European Investment Bank

Published: 7/12/2000

The second stage of the reconstruction of the Latvia's Riga International Airport started on 29th June, with the work being undertaken by two Latvian construction companies, PBLC and АСВ. In 15 months, according to reports, Riga will have a significantly changed airport at a cost of Lat 10 m ($17 m). The choice of PBLC was reported to have raised a few local eyebrows as the company has tax debts and the terms of the tender explicitly excluded companies in that situation. According to the Latvian Ministry of Transportation, the improvement of the airport's infrastructure is a priority of the national programme on transport development for 2000-2006 and is being financed through a loan of €10 m from the European Investment Bank. The terms of repayment of the loan are determined by the traffic growth at the airport, according to the Ministry of Transport, as the loan will be repaid from the levy of $12 on each passenger passing through the airport.

Article ID: 1935