The European Investment Bank (EIB) will advise Správa železnic on preparation and procurement of three major Czech high-speed rail projects as public-private partnerships (PPPs). It is worth mentioning that the EBRD is also supporting Czechia in its PPP projects for the development of the high-speed rail network.
These projects represent priority domestic rail investments that are part of wider international corridors linking Germany, the Czech Republic, Poland, Austria and Slovakia.
The advisory assignment will run for 27 months and provide technical assistance covering risk allocation, output-based performance specifications, tender documentation and contract structuring and monitoring of PPP concession contracts.
The agreement supports the Czech Government’s broader strategy to develop a high-speed rail network aligned with EU Regulation 2024/1679 on the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) and the national “Rapid Rail Services Development Programme” approved in 2018. The initiative is also supported by the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) through funding for feasibility studies and project preparation.
“The EIB has vast experience in a wide range of public-private partnerships, and we will put it in practice to support the authorities in the Czech Republic to deliver complex PPPs and accelerate the shift to greener, more efficient transport,” said EIB Vice-President Kyriacos Kakouris.
The supported Czech high-speed rail projects are expected to significantly enhance the appeal of rail travel in the country, free up capacity on conventional lines for strategic freight transport and integrate the network more closely with European corridors.
The EIB’s advisory support will focus on three strategic rail corridors to be procured through a first set of Czech rail PPPs:
- A EUR 2.2 billion upgrade investment from the centre of Prague to the nearby city of Kladno with a new branch to Vaclav Havel Airport, about 20 km to the northwest of the city centre, with the PPP covering a EUR 1.1 billion section from Prague Veleslavín station to the airport including rounding to the Praha – Kladno track.
- Investments in the new EUR 7 billion 150 km TEN-T high-speed Moravian corridor between Brno and Ostrava with the PPP covering:
a) The 50 km Brno–Nezamyslice stage of the 200 km/hr upgrade section between Brno and Přerov; and
b) The 74 km new HSL of 320 km/hr Eastern Moravia section between Přerov–Ostrava with 17 km of additional connector line
The airport link is essential to sustainably and comfortably connect air passengers to the centre of Prague and long-distance rail while the Moravian corridor is part of the priority Dresden–Prague–Brno–Vienna/Ostrava–Katowice TEN-T high-speed rail corridors, with total investment expected to exceed EUR 20 billion. The Moravian sections are the most advanced of the high-speed investments, with completion currently anticipated after 2030.
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