ArmInfo. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will provide Armenia with a grant of 2 million euros and a loan of 10 million euros for the construction of the Foreign Economic Activity (FEA) Center - a logistics and customs terminal in the city of Sisian in the Syunik region. Co-financing by the RA government will amount to 20% of the total amount.
On July 25, the Armenian Cabinet of Ministers approved the draft law on the ratification of the relevant agreement signed on May 14, 2024 in Yerevan. The center is planned to be built within the framework of the Crossroads of the World project near the village of Shaki, on a land plot of 7.7 hectares, 7 km from Sisian, next to the future new section of the North-South highway. An administrative building is planned to be built within the framework of the project. The center will be equipped with laboratory equipment, X-ray equipment for screening passenger transport, hand luggage and small cargo, for scanning people, UHF radio stations, a data processing center, document readers, document authentication devices. Anti-radiation equipment will be installed in the exit and entry zones, with equipment for recording data from trucks, 5 lanes for transport will be built.
Wth the launch of the center based on the use of electronic management systems and digital solutions, it will be possible to fully implement and apply the concept. Credit funds will be provided on the following terms: at a floating rate; the annual interest rate on the loan will be: 6-month Euribor + 1% margin; frequency of loan servicing payments: once every six months; a one-time commission of 1% of the loan amount is assumed; the commitment fee rate will be 0.5% per annum, which is calculated from the unused loan amount, starting from the 60th day after signing the Loan Agreement; loan repayment period: 15 years, of which 4 years are preferential; repayment of the principal amount of the loan is tied to the entire loan amount and will be made in 22 equal payments.
Earlier, on the sidelines of the signing of the agreement, in a conversation with an ArmIngo correspondent, Finance Minister Vahe Hovhannisyan noted that when speaking about the "Crossroads of the World", the authorities mean not only roads, but also other infrastructure that will have to service these roads. According to him, the authorities plan to build several Foreign Economic Activity (FEA) Centers that will be able to service the expected trade volumes. Head of the State Revenue Committee of Armenia Rustam Badasyan, in turn, explained that at this stage it is planned to build two FEA Centers in Syunik (in 2022, 373 thousand tons of cargo were declared at the Southern Customs Administration, and in 2023 - 569,000 tons) and in Yerevan. A competition has already been announced for the construction project of the latter, which will be located in the village of Proshyan.
The EBRD is a leading institutional investor in Armenia. The Bank has invested over ?2.087 billion in 210 projects in Armenia. The current project pipeline is valued at ?339 million.
Over the past 5 years, the EBRD has invested ?640 million in Armenia, supporting private sector development, improving infrastructure, generating renewable energy and digitalising rural areas. The current project pipeline is valued at ?339 million. To date, the EBRD has invested over ?2.1 billion in 210 projects across Armenia.
