Business news

MINSK, 3 October (BelTA) – The reconstruction of Minsk wastewater treatment facilities through an EBRD loan is under consideration, Belarusian Deputy Housing and Utilities Minister Gennady Trubilo noted at the bank’s regional seminar on the upgrade of the water supply and disposal system, BelTA has learned.

Gennady Trubilo pointed to the need to reconstruct wastewater treatment facilities in Minsk. The project requires some €150 million of financing. “We are already working on it. We thank the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development for working out a roadmap together with the Minsk City Hall. We hope to sign a loan agreement in 2018,” he remarked.

Today there are over 1,300 wastewater treatment facilities operating in Belarus, which purify over 1.3 million cubic meters of water a day. Gennady Trubilo stressed that the equipment has been wearing out, 31 wastewater treatment facilities and the sewerage system in cities and major population centers are completely worn out and require immediate overhaul. “The urgent measures to reconstruct and modernize the wastewater treatment facilities are estimated at $250 million,” the deputy minister said.

The EBRD’s regional seminar on the upgrade of the water supply and disposal system is taking place in Minsk from 3 to 4 October with support of the Belarusian Housing and Utilities Ministry and the Economy Ministry. The seminar brought together specialists from Belarus, the CIS, and Western Europe, representatives of ministries, international organizations, and donor organizations.