TGS Baltic Partner, Attorney at Law Inese Hazenfusa and Associate Māra Stabulniece provided legal assistance to the University of Latvia regarding the 30 MEUR investment contract of the European Investment Bank for the further development of the “Academic Centre”.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has provided a loan of up to 30 MEUR to the University of Latvia (UL) for the further development of its new campus (the “Academic Centre” in Riga, Torņakalns), in particular for the construction of state-of-the-art research and study facilities. It is the first time the EIB has lent directly to a higher education institution in the Baltic States. It is a crucial part of the Investment Plan for Europe, the so-called “Juncker Plan”.
The construction process for the Science House, which will bring together the institutes of science, part of the faculty of medicine, and the faculty of physics, is already under way in the Academic Centre. The total area of the building will be 20 000 m2, providing a workspace for up to 2 000 students and 500 employees.
The Writing House will accommodate humanities and social sciences faculties as well as science institutions specialised in these fields. The total area of the building is planned to be 32 000 m2, while up to 11 000 students and 1 100 employees will work there.
In 2015, the new Academic Centre celebrated the opening of the Nature House, which houses the chemistry, geography and land sciences and biology faculties, and hosts the laboratories of six research centres of national importance.
The University of Latvia (LU) is the largest institution of higher education in Latvia; it concentrates the leading study and research potential of the Republic of Latvia in natural sciences, humanities and social sciences.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the European Union's bank, who work closely with other EU institutions to implement EU policy. EIB is the world’s largest multilateral borrower and lender, and is a big investor not only in Europe, but also around the world.