42 million kuna for the construction of capital projects

The city of Vinkovci will finance two capital projects – the construction of the Croatian Home and an indoor swimming pool – by issuing municipal bonds in the amount of 42 million kuna, it was announced at today’s presentation of the bond issuance of Vinkovci held in Zagreb.

The bonds of the city of Vinkovci will be issued on October 23, and will mature on October 23, 2017. The book of subscriptions for the issuance will be opened on Wednesday, October 10, and the yield on the bonds will be determined on October 19 based on the interpolated seven-year yield of the kuna bond of the Ministry of Finance, increased by a 0.3 percent premium. The municipal bonds of Vinkovci will be listed on the Regular Market of the Zagreb Stock Exchange on October 25.

The President of the Management Board of PBZ, Božo Prka, emphasizes that Vinkovci is a healthy, medium-sized city with a balanced approach to its development, and that the funds from the bonds will also be used for its development. With the funds from the bonds, Vinkovci will finance the construction of the cultural and business center Croatian Home, which will include the city library and reading room, a multimedia center, and a business and cultural center, announced the mayor of Vinkovci, Mladen Karlić. He notes that the total investment in this center is estimated at 50 to 60 million kuna, and since Vinkovci suffered greatly during the Homeland War, during which the city library and two cinemas were burned, funding is also expected from the Ministry of Culture, as well as from the Ministry of Sea, Tourism, Transport and Development, and from entrepreneurs.

The second capital project to be financed by the bond issuance is the Vinkovci indoor swimming pool “Lenije,” which will feature two pools, a children’s pool, a fitness center, and more. In recent years, Vinkovci has recorded a trend of increasing the city budget, which has grown from 53.6 million kuna in 2002 to 164.1 million kuna, and Karlić particularly emphasizes that about 20 percent of current revenues are used for development projects. The city is not significantly indebted, with current indebtedness at 6.65 percent of realized budget revenues, and with the issuance of bonds in 2008, the indebtedness will amount to 10 percent, he said. Vinkovci is the fifth city to issue municipal bonds, following Koprivnica, Zadar, Rijeka, and Split. (Hina)