Poland-based BGK grants €81.5 for Lviv Innovation District IT Park project
The Innovation District IT Park project in Lviv has received financing to continue construction. Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego (BGK), Poland’s largest state-owned bank, has granted a loan of 81.5 million euros. Representatives of the Lviv IT Cluster, which is the project initiator, told the news to AIN.UA.
About Innovation District IT Park
Innovation District IT Park is a 10-hectare quarter, which will appear at the intersection of Stryiska and Ivan Chmola. The premises are planned to be used for IT business and innovative companies employees, as well as for training future tech professionals. In addition to offices, the IT Park will also have a laboratory campus, to which scientists and students from different educational institutions of the city will have free access.
The office part of the park is designed for 10,000 IT specialists. The project already has its first residents, including GlobalLogic, N-iX, Intellias, SoftServe, and Perfectial.
It was planned to start the park construction in 2018, but it has not started yet. The first phase of the project is scheduled to open in the second half of 2023.
Budget and investments
The total construction cost of the first stage of the project is €136 million. The project is implemented with the participation of a local investor and the largest real estate fund in the world with the support and partnership of the Lviv IT Cluster. The general contractor of the construction will be one of Poland’s largest construction companies, Unibep.
On April 7, the Lviv IT Cluster announced that the Polish bank BKG approved an €81.5 million loan for the Innovation District IT Park construction.
“We have been waiting on the bank’s decision for a long time. The investors expected to hear back in February 2020. However, due to COVID, the bank stopped making financial decisions. But we are glad that the project investors have received a positive answer from the bank, and we can say with confidence that the project is moving forward,” comments Stepan Veselovsky, CEO of the Lviv IT Cluster.
Previously, the Innovation District IT Park has raised $95 million from Galereja Centre (best known for the Lviv shopping mall Forum Lviv construction).