Macedonia seeks to co-op with China in energy projects

BELGRADE -- Macedonia sought to cooperate with China to build the Balkan country's primary gas network, Macedonian Prime Minister Nilola Gruevski said on Wednesday.

Macedonia was prepared to take part in the railroad project connecting Hungary and Greece via Macedonia, Gruevski said during the third China-Central and Eastern European leaders' meeting held in Belgrade.

According to the Prime Minister, Macedonian has talked with China about the construction of a primary gas network for all big Macedonian cities, which will alter Macedonian source of heating system from wood and electricity to natural gas.

After attending a joint meeting for building a high speed railroad between Budapest and Solun, through Belgrade and Skopje, with the representatives from China, Serbia and Hungary, Gruevski said "we are prepared to cooperate and I expect that we can discuss details of the entire operation, such as deadlines and conditions," according to a report by the Macedonian International News Agency.

Gruevski said Macedonian would like to know China's proposals about the financial package for this project and was consulting with European Bank for Reconstruction and Development for the project.

Macedonia is one of the first countries in the region that has utilized China's $10 billion fund for infrastructure and energy projects in Central and Eastern Europe, which was announced two year ago in Warsaw.

About 574 million euros ($712 million) has been allocated by the Chinese Export-Import Bank to build new highways in Macedonia.

Except for energy and infrastructure projects, some Chinese companies also showed interest to build plants in Macedonia. One company intended to open a large meat packaging plant and another one a cement factory.

To attract Chinese investment, Gruevski said Macedonia's goal is to improve the conditions for doing business and realize capital infrastructure projects.