MOSCOW, August 2 (Itar-Tass) —— Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has proposed to approve Russia’s contribution of 40 million euros to the Northern Dimension Environmental Partnership (NDEP).
The fund was established in 2001 to sponsor large environmental infrastructural projects in the Baltic and Barents Sea zones, Putin said.
“The Partnership will have the total budget of 150 million euros. The European Commission and the Russian Federation are the largest contributors, with 44 million euros and 40 million euros correspondingly. Sweden will contribute 26 million euros, and Finland will contribute 16 million,” Putin said at the Tuesday meeting of the government presidium.
In his words, Russia suggests 20 NDEP projects with the total value exceeding 3 billion euros.
“These include water mains and sewage networks in St. Petersburg, Syktyvkar, Arkhangelsk and a number of cities in the Leningrad region, and the construction of sewage facilities in Kaliningrad,” he said.
The participation in the NDEP gives an access to preferential grants of other international organizations, Putin said. He thinks that NDEP projects in Russia will bolster national environmental programs.