The European Investment Bank (EIB) is making available EUR 40 million (1) in support of cleaner energy autoproduction in Turkey.
The funds from the EIB, the European Union's long-term financing institution, are made available under the 1997-1999 "Euro-Med Partnership" mandate. They are advanced to the two largest private sector development banks in Turkey, Türkiye Sinai Kalkinma Bankasi A.S. (TSKB) and Sinai Yatirim Bankasi A.S. (SYB). The two Turkish partner banks will onlend the funds, directly or via leasing arrangements, in smaller amounts to finance some 5 to 10 power plants to be constructed under the autoproducer scheme of the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources.
The combined-cycle and co-generation heat and power plants, based on combustion turbo-generator units, or gas engines and heat recovery boilers, will provide clean energy to meet the owners' or shareholders' energy requirements. They will contribute to meeting electricity demand, which is growing in Turkey on average at 8.9% since 1990, without burdening the country's budget.
The EIB is a lead player in implementing the European Union's "Euro-Mediterranean Partnership" and its priority objectives. To this end, the Bank has been entrusted with a mandate for the period 1997-2000 to provide up to EUR 2310 million of funding for projects in the 12 non-EU Mediterranean countries which have signed cooperation and/or association agreements with the EU. Turkey is eligible to apply for EIB financing from this facility. Since 1995, the EIB has contributed more than EUR 500 million towards projects of key importance for the Turkish economy. The EIB has also promoted SMEs through global loans to commercial banks.
(1) Conversion rates: EUR 1 = 0.6663000 GBP, 1.07420 USD, 400.318 TRL.