- The loan will mobilise a total of €200 million in financing for sustainable projects as well as climate change adaptation and mitigation projects within SMEs and mid-caps operating mainly in Catalonia.
- The ICF will also benefit from EIB advisory services through the innovative Green Gateway programme to help it identify and select green projects eligible for financing.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) and the Catalan Finance Institute (ICF) have signed a €100 million loan for the ICF to finance sustainable investments and climate change mitigation and adaptation. The financing will mainly go to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), mid-caps and self-employed individuals in Catalonia. Total financing of €200 million is expected to be mobilised for this important segment of the economy.
The main purpose of the loan will be to make Catalan SMEs and mid-caps more competitive and to support their green transition. Special emphasis will be put on reducing CO2 emissions, improving energy efficiency and mitigating the effects of climate change.
The goal is to facilitate large-scale financing for sustainable projects of up to €25 million. These could be linked to improving the energy efficiency of buildings or reducing emissions from the transport of people or goods or the production of renewable energy, among others. The ICF will pass on the favourable terms of the EIB financing to SMEs and mid-caps that need funds for fixed and variable-rate investment or working capital projects.
The operation also includes advisory services provided by EIB Advisory — the EIB’s advisory and consultancy department — via its innovative Green Gateway programme. This is the first advisory operation signed by the EIB with a public financial institution in Spain. Through the Green Gateway advisory programme, funded by the InvestEU Advisory Hub, the ICF will strengthen its internal capabilities and processes to assess, originate, finance, monitor and report on green projects. In doing so, it will enhance its understanding of the EU sustainable finance regulatory framework, the EU taxonomy and other climate-related financial disclosure requirements.
EIB intermediary banks can use the Green Gateway to access the Green Eligibility Checker, an online tool that can be used to verify if a project is eligible for EIB green financing and to assess each project’s environmental impact.
With this operation, the ICF moves forward in its role as a public financial institution to invest in and finance projects that have a favourable impact on the economy, society, and the environment, reaffirming its long-term commitment to promoting sustainable economic development. Since 2021, the ICF has been a member of the UN Global Compact. It has also organised meetings across Catalonia since 2022 to promote sustainable economic growth and contribute to strong, ESG-aligned growth.
Background information
About the EIB
The European Investment Bank Group (EIB Group) — formed by the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Investment Fund (EIF) — reported another year of excellent results in Spain, with record support for climate action and environmental sustainability projects and €9.9 billion of total financing signed in 2022.
About the Green Gateway programme
Funded by the InvestEU Advisory Hub, the Green Gateway advisory programme was set up by the EIB to help financial institutions fast-track loans for climate change mitigation, adaptation and environmental sustainability projects through financing provided by the EIB.
The programme has two components: an online platform and a bilateral advisory programme. The online platform provides access to the Green Eligibility Checker tool and contains a library full of guidelines and case studies on green investment. The bilateral advisory programme provides capacity building, market analysis and support to banks to speed up and expand green lending to SMEs, mid-caps, municipalities and other entities. Three financial institutions in Spain are currently benefiting from this bilateral programme.
About the ICF
The ICF is Catalonia’s public promotional bank and its main mission is to boost the growth of companies and other entities. It finances relevant, transformational projects through loans and capital, with special emphasis on the green transition, reindustrialisation and social housing. The ICF often supplements commercial bank lending, offering long repayment terms to facilitate debt repayment. Since 2014, it has been a member of the European Association of Public Banks (EAPB), which brings together many of the public banks and financial institutions operating in Europe.