The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is reallocating €22.7 million of an existing loan to the Ukrainian national postal service, Ukrposhta, to increase the company’s operational resilience despite Russia’s war on Ukraine.
The original €63 million loan was agreed in November 2020. Its aim was to finance the modernisation of the company’s logistics infrastructure and operating fleet. However, Russia's full-scale war on Ukraine, which has made access to customers both harder and more urgent, has changed priorities.
Last December, the EBRD approved a €4.5 million co-investment grant, funded from its Shareholder Special Fund (SSF), to support the acquisition of satellite internet terminals and power generators for mobile post office vans - aiming to help keep people who are facing power cuts as a result of Russian bombing of civilian infrastructure in digital contact, even in remote rural areas.
The Bank is now making it possible to use €22.7 million for the acquisition of more than 5000 e-bikes and around 350 commercial trucks.
These new investments remain in line with the project’s original objectives and will enable the company to continue providing vital postal services to the local population and businesses in Ukraine, supporting the company’s postal fleet and improving delivery services.
The EBRD, which has a relationship with Ukraine dating back more than three decades, works both on projects and on support for the Ukrainian authorities’ reforms. It has significantly increased its support there since the Russian invasion last February, committing to invest €3 billion in 2022-23.
It stands ready to back reconstruction with further funding and know-how, and in May secured the permission of its Board of Governors to work on a potential capital increase of €3-5 billion by year-end to extend maximum support.
The EBRD has shared risk on its investments in wartime Ukraine with shareholders and donors on a 50:50 basis. However, since this transaction involves repurposing of agreed finance, no donor guarantee is expected.
