Brussels - The European Investment Bank (EIB) will no longer finance coal fired power plants. The decision is being made in the context of the ongoing review of its Energy Lending Policy in order to better align the bank’s operations with the long-term climate objectives of the European Union. The EIB is the largest international financial institution to exclude coal from its lending operations. 

 

Ahead of a presentation in Brussels of the EIB’s 2012 lending activities, EIB president Werner Hoyer said, “In January the Governors of the European Investment Bank unanimously voted to increase the bank’s capital base by EUR 10 billion in order to finance priority sectors including clean energy. Their decision is an unambiguous message that the EIB is committed to achieving the climate objectives of the European Union, including the long-term perspective set out in the 2050 energy roadmap. Restricting support for fossil fuels sends two important signals: a political one to the world that the EIB is a leader on action to combat climate change, and a financial one to the capital markets that the EIB sees energy efficiency and renewable energy as the investments of the future.”

 

In recent years, the EIB has significantly increased its lending to renewables and energy efficiency. In 2010, Climate Action lending had already reached 30 percent of the bank’s overall portfolio, a positive trend which will continue under the new Energy Lending Policy. 

 

The EIB, which last year allocated approximately twenty percent of its EUR 60 billion portfolio, or EUR 13 billion, to the energy sector, will continue to boost its support for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. As much as 60 percent of EIB lending could be allocated to the Climate Action Programme by 2020.

 

Press Contact: