Azerbaijan, Baku / corr. Trend I.Khalilova / The Finance Ministry of Azerbaijan states that the World Bank (WB) is prepared to increase the amount of finances for the project of assistance to the transit via railway and trade. According to the initial assessments, the cost of the project amounts to $40 mln.
According to the WB Partnership Strategy with the Azerbaijani Government for 2007-2010, $80 mln is expected to be granted for the project on assisting transit via the Azerbaijani railways. The forthcoming credit will be granted according to the conditions of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD).
Through the WB grant, the consultants have prepared an initial description of the project, however the course of the project is still yet to be made concrete. Consequently there has been a delay in the official talks between the WB and the Government of Azerbaijan. In addition, Azerbaijan is still to define their exact input of the share which could reach to nearly 20-30%.
For this reason, the Ministry of Finance does not expect the project to be approved by the WB Board in the financial year of 2007. The WB mission headed by Gerald Olivier, the WB Chief Transport Specialist and Head of the Project Group, has been in Azerbaijan since the 11th of June to hold consultations with the Government of Azerbaijan.
Furthermore, the financiers link the delay with the necessity to approve the Azerbaijan State Railway Infrastructure Improvement Program (2007-2012) which totals AZN 1.2 bln.