Chinese Government provides RMB 692 million grant— via ETCA — for Dynamo National Olympic Stadium Construction Project (Linked to Project ID#90334)

On April 25, 2019, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Belarusian President Lukashenko unveiled a model of the Belarusian National Football Stadium and Swimming Pool Project. Then, on August 6, 2019, Belarusian Economy Minister Dmitry Krutoi announced that the Chinese Government would provide a $235 million grant for the construction of a national football stadium and world-class swimming pool in Minsk. One week later, on August 13, 2019, the President of Belarus signed Decree 306 for the Dynamo National Olympic Stadium [Национальный олимпийский стадион ”Динамо“], and Decree 307 for the Republican Center for Olympic Training in Water Sports [Республиканский центр олимпийской подготовки по водным видам спорта]. The RMB 692 million grant commitment from China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) for the Dynamo National Olympic Stadium Construction Project is captured via Project ID#66089, while the RMB 576 million grant commitment from MOFCOM for the Republican Center for Olympic Training in Water Sports Construction Project is captured via Project ID#90334. The grant funding was drawn from multiple Economic and Technical Cooperation Agreements (ETCAs) that the Chinese Government and the Government of Belarus had previously signed. One of these ETCAs was signed on June 10, 2018 and it committed RMB 800 million for the Dynamo National Olympic Stadium Construction Project, the Republican Center for Olympic Training in Water Sports Construction Project, and other projects. Another ETCA was signed on October 10, 2018. It committed an unknown amount of grant grant funding for the Dynamo National Olympic Stadium Construction Project and the Republican Center for Olympic Training in Water Sports Construction Project. The purpose of the Dynamo National Olympic Stadium Construction Project is to construct a stadium with 33,000 seats in the capital city of Minsk. The design and construction of the stadium is meant to comply with the prevailing standards of international football federations (FIFA and UEFA). The project site is located on on Vaneyeva Street next to the existing Traktor Stadium and it occupies an area of 12.43 hectares and a building area of 48,000 square meters. Beijing Urban Construction Group (BUCG) is the contractor responsible for project implementation. A consortium consisting of China International Engineering Corporation (IPPR), a subsidiary of CAMCE, and its affiliated Jingxing International Engineering Management Co. are responsible for project design and management. MOFCOM awarded BUCG an RMB 692 million project implementation contract on May 15, 2020. Three days later, on May 18, 2020, the the Agency for International Economic Cooperation (AIECO) of China’s Ministry of Commerce convened a kick-off meeting for the project. A formal project commencement ceremony took place on June 30, 2020. On June 1, 2022, a Chinese subcontractor loaded into a Chinese port a set of prefabricated stand molds for the stadium in Belarus. The project was originally expected to commence on June 28, 2020 and reach completion by December 31, 2023.

Additional details

1. Many sources identify a single $235 million grant commitment to build both facilities while others list the total grant commitment as $180 million. AidData has used the monetary values of the MOFCOM contracts that were issued for these projects and coded the Project ID#90334 and Project ID#66089 accordingly. 2. These two facilities are also located in different areas of Minsk, despite initial plans for them to be attached. 3. This project is also known as the National Football Stadium Construction Project. The Russian project title is ациональный олимпийский стадион ”Динамо“. The Chinese project title is 白俄罗斯国家足球体育场项目

Number of official sources

19

Number of total sources

42