The European Investment Bank, the world's largest multilateral financial institution, today announced a volume of record loans in 2015 for 84,5 billion. These are investments in essential infrastructure and to improve access to capital in Europe and around the world. The volume of investments in support of innovation and projects for the climate, indicates the EIB, "is unprecedented". In 2014, total loans from the EIB group (which also includes the European Investment Fund) amounted to 80,3 billion euros.
Looking to Italy, last year it benefited from record loans from the EIB, the bank of the European Union, for a total amount of 11,7 billion of new business out of the total 84 billion distributed by the EIB in Europe. “A record year for the volume of financing” indicated the EIB Vice President Dario Scannapieco upon presentation of the final balance, the increase compared to 2014 was 2,7 per cent. The total value of the projects financed in 2015 in Italy was 29 billion, the total loans at the end of 2015 were 68,3 billion. Through the funding provided by the Luxembourg-based bank, last year they were financed over 7.200 small and medium-sized enterprises. Scannapieco underlines how one of the EIB's priorities in 2016 will still be that of SMEs "we want to help develop venture capital, which is an essential tool for SMEs: to do this we are working with the Government and the CDP".
In addition to the launch of funding to support the Juncker Plan from April 2015 (the 7,5 billion EIB funds will serve to multiply other loans including private ones for a total that should exceed 50 billion euros according to forecasts) the Bank of European Union governments has also made the consultancy 'centre' operational/ investment assistance (European Investment Advisory Hub) which helps to attract investment for projects using all the variety of available resources. Last year, investments in innovation amounted to 18,7 billion. The support of the EIB group alle small and medium enterprises includes 29,2 billion for loans through local partners: this is the highest level ever achieved by the European Investment Fund, the EIB's financial 'arm' which provides risk capital for SMEs. Overall, 19 billion were used for strategic infrastructures (from the modernization of hospitals, schools, universities, social housing, ports, roads, railways, water networks, energy, communications ). Furthermore, the EIB has also begun to invest in projects to welcome immigrants in both destination and transit countries.
The EIB does not operate on the basis of a breakdown by geographical share, the bank reiterated today, but "focuses on the most vulnerable countries". Exposure to Cyprus, Slovenia, Portugal, Hungary, Poland and Greece exceeds 9% of GDP and in 2015, EIB loans represented over 1700 euros per capita in Slovenia, Slovakia, Greece and Latvia.
As regards the financing projects for the iclimate investments, the EIB is currently the most important multilateral loan provider at a global level: this sector represents 26,5% of its total loans.
For the climate projects, 10,1 billion they were used to support transport projects, 3,4 billion for renewable energies, 1,6 billion for innovation, research and development, 1 billion for adaptation to climate change. Energy efficiency loans have tripled in the past three years.
“In the next five years – indicated the BEI president Werner Hoyer – we will provide nearly one hundred billion for climate action around the world, we will work with multilateral development banks to mobilize private capital for investments that make a real difference”.
The EIB provided loans last year 7,8 billion euros outside Europe. The enlargement and EFTA countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland) were the main beneficiaries with 2,7 billion in total. The neighboring countries of the East got 1 billion, the countries of the Mediterranean area 1,4 billion, 1,1 billion went to Asia, Central Asia and Latin America, 1,1 billion to Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific.
Last March completed the lending business of additional 180 billion, requested by the heads of state and government for the period 2013-2015 on the basis of the capital increase of ten billion. That goal was achieved, Hoyer noted with some satisfaction, nine months ahead of schedule.
