HN: Companies offer the state that they will build roads on credit

Prague - Representatives of construction companies have begun offering the state to complete roads, the construction of which was halted in the summer by Transport Minister Vít Bárta (VV) due to a lack of funds. The costs run into billions of crowns, which the state would gradually repay in the coming years, writes today’s Hospodářské noviny (HN). Offers have already been submitted by the company Skanska, Eurovia, and Strabag is also considering it.
    "We are offering the Ministry of Transport and the Road Directorate to finance these projects for them. We are also willing to defer the financing. I cannot specify exactly by how much, but in three years it can be discussed," said HN CEO of Skanska, Dan Ťok.
    Other companies are joining in as well. "I can confirm that a similar offer also came from our side," said HN spokesperson for Eurovia, Iveta Štočková. The same step is being considered by Strabag as well.
    While plans at Strabag are still in the early stages, Skanska and Eurovia have already sent more detailed proposals to the Road Directorate. Skanska proposes to complete the first section of the bypass of Česká Lípa near the village of Sosnová, and Eurovia is suggesting the road between Ostrava and Opava or the highway from Bohumín to the state border with Poland. However, work on its construction has not yet effectively started, unlike the other two projects that are nearly completed.
    The Ministry of Transport is currently responding positively to the builders’ offers. "After previous unwillingness to make concessions, we welcome this as a constructive step from the construction companies. However, it depends on the specific terms of the contracts," said ministry spokesperson Tomáš Ervín Dombrovský to the newspapers. The companies do not want to disclose them. According to the Road Directorate, the problem is that the state is currently unable to guarantee that it will have funds for repayments in the coming years.
    Completing two sections near Česká Lípa in northern Moravia would cost over two billion crowns. This year, the state will only spend 61 billion crowns on transport projects, while last year it was a record 96 billion.
    If Transport Minister Vít Bárta reaches an agreement with the builders, it would also be the first time that roads in the Czech Republic are constructed with private money. Builders would thus open the door to so-called PPP projects, which involve cooperation between the state and the private sector.
    Minister Bárta supports the PPP project model, saying it will commence in two years. These would relate to the expansion of the Brno D1 highway for 18 billion CZK or the construction of a section of the South Bohemian D3 for 12 billion. If domestic companies prove themselves now, they could take a significant share of the funding from Chinese companies, with whom Bárta is also negotiating regarding the construction of Czech highways.