The EBRD is supporting the upgrade of the Murmansk Oblast’s water and wastewater systems. The project will enable inhabitants to access better quality drinking water and ensure the preservation of Kola Bay.
More than 350,000 people living in the Murmansk Oblast in the north-west of Russia, will drink better quality water and Kola Bay (the Barentz Sea basin) will be better preserved thanks to improvements to the water production facilities and water and wastewater treatment plants.
Funds from the EBRD and Norway
In 2010 the Northern Dimension Environmental Partnership (NDEP) and the EBRD together with Nordic Environment Finance Corporation (NEFCO) approved a grant and a loan to Murmanskvodokanal, the municipal company providing water services for €8 million and €16.2 million, respectively, to finance critical investments in the water and wastewater infrastructure in Murmansk.
The project is supported by TC funded by Norway to assist the municipal company in the design and implementation of a corporate development plan. The consultancy will provide a recommendation on reform measures needed to improve the company’s financial, operational and managerial performance, such as provisions to improve the existing tariff methodology to enhance cost recovery and ensure cost efficiency within the company.
The priority investment programme includes the rehabilitation of the 345-kilometre wastewater collection network, the modernisation of the wastewater pumping stations and the closure of untreated direct sewage discharges in the local basins; the rehabilitation of the water supply and 425-kilometre length distribution system with new automated filtering and chemical dosing systems; and the procurement of special maintenance vehicles.
The investment will help enhance the water quality, achieving considerable energy and water savings, and improve the sustainability of the local environment.
