Informal Meeting of European Union Ministers for Transport September 5th – 6th 2011

 

Initiating a debate concerning non-budgetary forms of funding transport infrastructure and exchanging experience in the field of investments implemented in the Public-Private Partnership formula are the two objectives of the informal meeting of European Union ministers for transport, to take place on September 5th-6th 2011 in Sopot. The Polish Presidency shall be represented by Cezary Grabarczyk, minister of infrastructure.

 

The meeting shall be attended by representatives of European Union member states, by a European Commission representative – Siim Kallas, Vice-President of the European Commission and Commissioner for Transport – and by Brian Simpson, President of the Transport and Tourism (TRAN) Committee at the European Parliament. Speeches will also be delivered by Maj Theander, representative of the European Investment Bank, and Yves Thibault de Silguy, Chairman of the VINCI Group, which operates in the field of infrastructure projects implemented according to the Public-Private Partnership formula.

 

Among the topics under discussion in the course of the session planned for September 6th will be infrastructure financing and the public sector’s co-operation with private partners within the Public-Private Partnership framework. The session shall be preceded with bilateral meetings, including Minister Grabarczyk’s meeting with Siim Kallas, Vice-President of the European Commission and Commissioner for Transport.

 

Given the current economic situation in Europe and worldwide, public funds used for investment purposes no longer ensure sufficient development of transport infrastructure. The construction of new infrastructure and the renewal of that which already exists in the entire European Union remains a key factor ensuring the retention of economic growth dynamics, and an element of sustainable mobility of passengers and freight. This is why the search for alternative sources of transport infrastructure funding in the EU has become a crucial aspect of public debate throughout the Union.Agenda
 

 

Source – Polish Presidency