EIB to provide EUR 9.7 million loan for the digitalization of terrestrial broadcasting infrastructure in Romania

Newsroom 14/12/2018 | 12:24

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is lending EUR 9.78 million to Romanian public company Societatea Nationala de Radiocomunicatii SA (Radiocom) to partially finance the digitalization of the country’s terrestrial broadcasting infrastructure. This transaction is backed by the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), the financial pillar of the Investment Plan for Europe, or ”Juncker Plan”.

This project supports the roll-out of a digital TV broadcasting network based on the DVB-T2 standard, to enable the switch-over from analogue to digital terrestrial television distribution. The network that will be rolled-out at 228 broadcasting sites is planned to carry the signal of the national free-to-air TV operator covering some 94 percent of the population and 81 percent of the country.

The investments will also contribute to a more efficient use of the highly valuable radio spectrum.

“The EIB loan will finance the digitalization of public terrestrial broadcasting in line with national and European policies, supporting the transition of TV to digital broadcasting. This will facilitate the development of the information society to benefit the people of Romania,” EIB Vice-President Andrew McDowell commented.

According to the European Commissioner for Regional policy Corina Cretu, with the new agreement, the Juncker Plan is making a very visible difference to the everyday lives of Romanians by bringing better quality TV into their homes.