EU investment bank agrees Fos 2XL finance deal

On completion of the project, which is creating two new terminals due on stream in 2010, capacity will increase from the current 1m teu per year to 2.5m teu. Some 400 direct jobs will also be generated in addition to several thousand in allied sectors.

Backing from the BEI – the European Union finance institution – acknowledges that the scheme meets several criteria for the development of European transport networks. During the signing, M. de Fontaine Vive said the project was vital given the strategic location of Marseilles Fos in the Motorways of the Sea and intermodal transport networks being put in place.

The BEI loan represents 48% of the €210m total public funding required for Fos 2XL and will be available in several tranches over a three-year period. Each tranche will be subject to specific rates of interest and loan durations ranging from five to 30 years. The port is financing 26% of the cost (€55m), while the remaining 26% is coming from the French government and regional authorities.