The Italian jobs
Italy assumed the presidency of the European Union on 1 July. The EIB is supporting projects across the board in the country, helping create growth and jobs and boosting innovation. We remain committed to backing the modernisation of the Italian economy, now and in the future.
Have a heart
In May 2014, the EIB finalised a EUR 100m loan to the Sorin Group, a global medical device company whose products are used to treat over one million patients per year.
The organisation is a leader in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases, and our loan will go towards supporting Research, Development and Innovation (RDI) for new products in cardiac surgery and cardiac rhythm management, as well as innovative medical devices tailored towards the treatment of heart failure. A certain amount will also be used to fund improvements to existing devices such as pacemakers and heart valve repair or replacement products.
80% of these activities will be carried in the Sorin Group’s R&D centres in Italy, with the remainder being conducted in France. Overall, the loan will cover around one third of the Group’s total RDI expenditure for the period 2014-2016 in the Italy and France, and cover a range of projects in different stages, from pre-clinical studies to clinical trials.
Green is the new azure
While the idea of Sardinia may conjure images of tourism, the island is also home to Matrica. This ambitious and innovative project has seen an existing petrochemical site in Porto Torres being transformed into a green chemistry complex.
Matrica is a joint venture between leading petrochemical company Versalis (Eni) and innovative bio-plastics outfit Novamont, and was supported with an EIB loan of EUR 200m. Cutting edge production methods are being applied at the facility to turn vegetable oils into base products for the manufacture of bio-degradable plastic bags, green tyres, or cosmetics. The plant does not use ozone, and the processes are safe and have a low environmental impact.
The first of the plants at the northern Sardinia town came into service in June of this year, with a further two to follow soon. Matrica has some 120 employees, a figure which should reach 145 by the end of the year, while an average of 400 workers per day were employed in the construction and conversion phases of the operation, jobs which were appreciated on the island, where the unemployment rate is around 18%.
Transforming Trento
The EIB signed three different loans with the Autonomous Province of Trento at the end of April 2014, with a total value of EUR 249m. Of these investments, EUR 145m will be made available municipal projects within the province, with a focus on renewable energy and energy efficiency, but urban renewal and regeneration, infrastructure, transport and education schemes are also eligible.
EUR 70m of the total is going towards a EUR 150m investment programme for the University of Trento. This loan is especially innovative. While 60% of the financing will be used for tangible infrastructure, notably the reconstruction and refurbishment of teaching, research and support facilities as well as the conversion of an old tobacco factory into a neuroscience research centre, the remainder will be used for direct investment into RDI activities, including academic and research staff salaries. This will actively promote the university as a centre of innovation.
Innovating for Italian SMEs
The EIB and EIF (European Investment Fund) joined forces to support an initiative taken by the Credito Valtellinese banking group (Creval) in February 2014, with the view to boosting resources available to small businesses in Italy by EUR 390m.
The operation is an innovative one. A special purpose vehicle called “Quadrivio SME 2014” was created, which issued four classes of asset backed securities (A1, A2A, A2B, B). The EIB subscribed EUR 200m to the A2A class, while the EIF guaranteed EUR 80m in A1 securities.
The EIB Group’s interventions helped Creval raise an additional EUR 110m from institutional investors, and shows that the Bank can offer intermediaries support beyond the traditional loan structure. This support will, in turn, benefit Italian SMEs on the ground as they seek finance to grow their businesses.