Goran Sugarevski, Minister of Transport and Communications, and Bujar Osmani, Deputy Prime Minister for European Affairs of North Macedonia, announced the start of the WBIF technical assistance for the preparation of the detailed design, full environmental and social impact assessment, and tender documents for the motorway section Stenkovec Interchange – Blace at the kick-off meeting in Skopje.

This technical assistance is funded by a €1.3 million EU grant through the WBIF and is implemented by the Infrastructure Project Facility 7. It builds on previous EU grant support allocated by the WBIF for the preparation of the feasibility study, preliminary environmental and social impact assessment, and preliminary design for this section.

The assistance will advance the investment project to the construction stage, i.e. the upgrade to motorway standards of the existing road between Skopje and Blace (12.4 km), from Stenkovec Interchange (Skopje bypass) to Blace, the border crossing point with Kosovo*. The road is part of the indicative extension of the TEN-T Core Network (Orient/East-Med Corridor) in the Western Balkans, Route 6a, which runs between Ribarevina (Montenegro), Ribarice (Serbia), Pristina and on to Skopje, connecting Routes 4 and 7 with Corridor VIII.

This investment has a vital role in the economic and social development of the north-east region of the country, and facilitates international transport and trade in the region, as it links domestic markets to the Port of Thessaloniki.

The Ministry of Transport and Communications and the Public Enterprise for State Roads are the lead institution and the beneficiary of the project, respectively. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is the Lead Financial Institution.

 Additional information on the project can be found here.

 * This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/1999 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.