The FINANCIAL — NIB and Svensk Luftambulans (SLA) have signed a 20-year loan agreement of SEK 180 million (EUR 17 million) to finance the merger of local airborne ambulance services in Sweden and the acquisition of new helicopters.
The members of Svensk Luftambulans include the county councils of Värmland, Dalarna, Västra Götaland and the Region Uppsala, who joined forces to form a regional network for improving pre-hospital care delivered by ambulance helicopters and better coordination of emergency services, according to NIB.
The loan will finance the acquisition of the airborne ambulance services of Värmland and Dalarna, as well as the acquisition of two new helicopters to replace older aircraft.
“Establishing cross-regional cooperation for delivering airborne medical services will help to improve logistics and the efficiency of emergency care. The project will also allow medical equipment and maintenance to be centralised”, says Henrik Normann, NIB President & CEO.
Svensk Luftambulans (SLA) is a medical helicopter federation and air rescue service that operates air emergency services in four Swedish counties. At year-end 2017, SLA employed around 60 people and operated four helicopters.
