Kosovo: Low investments in comfortable trains

Prishtinë, Sept. 29, 2005 – It will take some time before Kosovo citizens will be offered the possibility to travel in comfortable trains. Very little has been invested in rehabilitating the railway network in Kosovo, a sector that continues to be an UNMIK reserved competency.

Paul Rich, Director of UNMIK Railways accepts this. “Only €10 million have been invested since 2002,” he said.

Rich said that the management’s strategy is based on the business plan for the 2005-2009 period. “According to this strategy, the profit would increase during this period from €2.4 million to €12.7 million,” said Rich.

Rich went on saying that under his management, four out of eight locomotives of the Railways have been repaired. According to him, another achievement of the railways is the opening of the container terminal, which enables the railways to become financially self-sustainable.

“The terminal was built to accept all kinds of shipments of conventional goods and those in containers,” said UNMIK Railways officials.

Rich said that they plan to broaden the network in regards to transport loads from Ferronikel and Llamkos, which would increase the commercial transport from €250,000 to €1.6 million annually.

ECIKS / Koha Ditore