>@Mercedes Landete/EIB
  • The EU bank is providing EUR 150m to Bankia to promote the purchase of near zero energy buildings (NZEBs), with the Spanish bank adding a further EUR 150m of its own to the credit line.
  • This is the EIB's first operation in Spain or anywhere in the EU promoting this kind of mortgage.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) and Bankia are set to facilitate access to energy-efficient and low-emission homes in Spain. To this end, the EU bank has provided Bankia with a EUR 150m loan, which the Spanish institution will match with a EUR 150m contribution of its own. This means that the new EIB-financed green mortgage credit line will have access to a EUR 300m fund. The agreement was signed today by EIB Vice-President Emma Navarro and Bankia Executive Chairman José Ignacio Goirigolzarri. 

The EIB is supporting this pioneering operation with the goal of promoting the purchase of near zero energy homes in Spain. Those using the Bankia green mortgages will benefit from the favourable conditions of the EIB financing in terms of both interest rates and maturity periods, potentially leading to a reduction of 25 basis points.

To this end, the new homes being purchased must meet environmental sustainability requirements above and beyond current new housing market standards. To be eligible, the development must have, among other things, adequate thermal and sound insulation and ventilation systems to guarantee the lowest possible energy use while also making the homes more liveable and providing an increased level of comfort. Only newly built housing may benefit from this type of credit.

At the signing ceremony today in Madrid, the EIB Vice-President said: "Promoting sustainable and inclusive economic growth and climate action are priority objectives for the EU bank. We are therefore very pleased with the signing of this agreement, under which the EIB will help to provide green mortgages, supporting Bankia so that citizens wishing to buy a sustainable, low-emission home can benefit from the favourable conditions of our financing.”

The Bankia Executive Chairman also hailed this pioneering agreement. “We are creating a business model based on responsible banking that supports people and their projects and offers growth and development opportunities. To this end, this agreement confirms Bankia and the EIB's commitment to being financial sector reference points for mobilising finance for projects including sustainability criteria in their design and implementation, thereby expanding banking's role in building a fairer and more balanced society.”

“At Bankia, we are working to promote sustainable financing with products and facilities such as the Sustainable Loan, the Sustainable Future Fund and the green mortgage, a new line of services benefiting our clients while also making a social and environmental contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals,” emphasised José Ignacio Goirigolzarri.

EIB: the world's largest climate action financer

The agreement signed today is part of a programme of loans approved by the EIB to promote projects in Spain that contribute to climate change mitigation or adaptation, boosting investment in energy efficiency, the transition to renewable energy sources and cutting greenhouse gases.

The EIB is the world's largest multilateral provider of climate finance and aims to dedicate at least 25% of its investments to climate change mitigation and adaptation, supporting low-carbon growth with climate resilience. In 2018, the EIB dedicated EUR 16.2bn to promoting climate action, i.e. 29% of its total activity. Mobilising finance for climate action is one of the EU bank's priorities. Its goal is to be a leader in mobilising the finance needed to keep global warming to under 2˚C and limit temperature rises to 1.5˚C to meet the Paris Agreement objectives.

Last year, the EIB allocated EUR 1.285bn to financing investments fostering the use of clean energy, enabling the implementation of more environmentally friendly production processes and promoting less polluting modes of transport in Spain.

The EIB is the world's largest issuer of green bonds and was the first to make an issue on this market.