PARLIAMENT RATIFIES CREDIT AGREEMENTS WITH IDA AND EIB

The Parliament ratified on Friday the credit agreements with the International Development Association and the European Investment Bank.

The first agreement concerns the financing of the "Moldova Economic Management Program (DPO-3)", which was signed in Chisinau on July 11 and implies the providing of 24.9 million euros from the World Bank (WB) for financing the budget deficit.

Finance Minister Octavian Armasu said that the conditions of crediting imply a fixed interest rate worth 1.42% per year, five-year grace period in payments and 25-year term of repayment.

Chairwoman of the Party of Socialists Zinaida Grechanaya called the Minister not to direct the credit to financing the current expenditures, as this is not only ineffective, but will also throw the country into a debtor's prison.

"Similar credits for the current expenditures were taken in 1997-1998, when US$75 million were swallowed in three days, after which in 2001-2002 the country was on the verge of financial default. Now, we are doing the same mistakes. Direct the funds to concrete investment goals and Government creditors will support this decision", the former Premier said.

The agreement between the Republic of Moldova and the EIB, signed on December 20. 2017, is directed to financing the project of interconnecting the Moldovan and Romanian electricity networks. It implies the providing of a credit worth 80 million euros.

According to State Secretary Vitalie Iurcu, the total sum of credit will be received in tranches, each of which should be not less than 1 million euros, the commission and interest rates will be calculated for each tranche in part on the basis of the EURIBOR rates for the euro and the LIBOR rates for the US dollar.

He said that according to the calculations, the works on building the Back-to-Back station will be completed by 2021-2022, while immediately after that the electricity networks unification will became possible.

The Parliament has to ratify a similar agreement worth 80 million euros with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.