14 Apr 2009

NDEP grants EUR 24m for wastewater treatment in St. Petersburg

The Northern Dimension Environmental Partnership Fund (NDEP Fund) has provided a grant totalling EUR 24 million for co-financing the Neva Closure of Discharges of Untreated Wastewater Programme in St. Petersburg, Russia.

The non-refundable assistance agreement was signed on 14 April by First Vice President Nils E.Emilsson on behalf of the Nordic Investment Bank, and General Director Felix Karmazinov on behalf of the Russian water utility Vodokanal St. Petersburg.

NIB is an implementing agency (a lead bank) for this project within the NDEP. The project includes the building of a second channel of St. Petersburg’s sewage collection tunnel and the rehabilitation of the Northern Wastewater Treatment Plant.  

The first channel of the sewage collection tunnel, in operation since autumn 2008, has prevented 90,000 cubic metres per day of untreated effluents from being discharged to the river Neva and the Baltic Sea. This has improved the city’s wastewater treatment level to 87% of all discharges. Once the second segment is in use, as expected in 2012, the city will be able to treat up to 98% of its wastewater.

The NDEP is a cooperative effort to coordinate and support the financing of urgent environmental investments in Northwest Russia. The partnership combines the expertise and resources of the European Commission, the Russian Federation, the EBRD, the EIB, NIB and the World Bank.

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