Bar–Golubovci railway line reconstruction gets €175.6m EU package

The Bar–Golubovci railway line reconstruction has secured a €175.6 million package from the European Union to rebuild 39 km of track on a key section of Rail Route 4 on the extended TEN-T Core Network. This corridor sits on the wider link between Belgrade and the Port of Bar, connecting Montenegro and the Western Balkans with Central Europe, as previously covered by Railway Supply.

Bar–Golubovci railway line reconstruction on TEN-T Rail Route 4

The 39 km works are intended to lift train speeds and make services run more consistently, with improvements targeted at reliability, safety and capacity. Once finished, the upgrade is expected to raise the quality of rail service along the route and support multimodal transport.

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Targets set out for the project include capacity for 1.3 million passengers a year and the ability to carry 1.85 million tonnes of freight annually. The programme is also intended to strengthen the line’s resilience to climate change.

How the €175.6 million EU funding package is structured?

Funding is split between two main sources: a €63 million loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) and a €112.6 million European Commission grant provided under the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF). Together, these make up the €175.6 million EU funding package supporting the reconstruction programme.

The total cost is estimated at €230.8 million. In addition to the EIB loan and the EU grant, financing includes a €50 million loan from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and €5.2 million from the government of Montenegro, as reported by International Railway Journal.

EIB comments on Montenegro rail upgrade funding

EIB Vice-President Robert de Groot said the investment is “another tangible step toward aligning Montenegro’s core infrastructure with EU standards and accelerating the country’s path toward accession.” He added that, with these latest agreements, EIB Global’s support for Montenegro’s transport sector will reach €500 million, aimed at improving regional connectivity, boosting trade and tourism, and supporting a more integrated common regional market.

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