The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and municipal enterprise Odesmiskelektrotrans of Odesa City Council have signed a loan agreement for a EUR 8 million loan for 12 years to upgrade trolleybuses which will be provided under municipal guarantees.

EBRD Senior Adviser for External Affairs Anton Usov told Interfax-Ukraine that the city of Odesa is the first municipality to secure a 12-year municipally guaranteed loan worth EUR8 million for a local transport operator, in this case Odesmiskelektrotrans.

"The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is continuing to promote modern and energy efficient urban transport systems in Ukraine with the approval of a EUR100 million financing facility for public transport improvements in a number of Ukrainian municipalities," reads a EBRD press release.

"The loan funds will be used for the acquisition of 45 new trolleybuses, which will replace almost half of the existing fleet in the city. Procurement under the project will be implemented in strict accordance with the bank's procurement policies and rules, the efficiency of which has been successfully tested for over 20 years in the context of EBRD-funded public sector deals in Ukraine," reads the document.

In addition, the bank intends to give help in providing Odesa with free technical assistance for public transport reforms.

"Funding from international bilateral/multilateral donors is also anticipated," Usov said.

The bank and the city council are discussing the possibility of raising new loans for the purchase of new trams, as well as a number of energy saving projects.