Loan to finance construction of wastewater treatment facilities, water reservoir rehab
Nov. 5, 2002 -- The European Investment Bank (EIB), the European Union's long-term financing institution, announces a € 91 million loan to Canal de Isabel II to finance construction of wastewater treatment facilities in the Madrid Region as well as the rehabilitation of a water reservoir below the Plaza de Castilla, in the north of the city.
The contract for the first instalment (€ 66 million) was signed in Madrid by EIB Vice-President Isabel Martin Castella and Mr. Pedro Calvo, Chairman of Canal de Isabel II and Head of the Community of Madrid's Environmental Department.
Canal de Isabel II is the Community of Madrid's company responsible for managing the water cycle in the region. The project comprises the construction of 73 new wastewater treatment plants, the expansion and rehabilitation of 2 existing plants, and the building of 172 km of sewage collectors and 10 pumping stations.
These works form part of Madrid's Regional Sanitation Plan, whose aim is to treat 100% of the local municipalities' wastewater by 2003. The project also includes rehabilitation of the underground water reservoir below Madrid's Plaza de Castilla.
By mounting this operation, Madrid - which, with over 5 million inhabitants is one Spain's most densely populated regions and a major economic centre - is implementing the EU's wastewater treatment directives two years ahead of time.
The planned investment in wastewater treatment facilities will improve the quality of the region's sources of drinking water, safeguarding environmental resources and enhancing the local population's quality of life.
Since Spain joined the €opean Union in 1986, the EIB has financed projects worth more than € 5 300 million in the Madrid Region, notable recent examples being the construction of a new metro line in the south of the city and the expansion of the Madrid Metro and Barajas Airport.
