Latvia

Together with the Latvian Ministry of Economy, in mid-March Altum launched a EUR 200m Covid-19 Working Capital Loan Programme, a support mechanism for Latvian businesses impacted by the Covid-19 crisis. To expand the capabilities of this programme to safeguard Latvian businesses and jobs, in July the European Investment Bank lent ALTUM €80 million in Covid-related financing. The Government of the Republic of Latvia provided additional €50 million. So far, the European financing has helped ALTUM to support 475 Latvian companies, thus making sure that more than 1580 people’s jobs were safeguarded.

The EIB has signed an EUR 18 million loan agreement with the Latvian national promotional institution ALTUM to finance energy efficiency projects by Latvian companies. The financing is complemented by a  EUR 3 million guarantee under the “Private Finance for Energy Efficiency (PF4EE)” instrument, provided by the European Union under the LIFE programme (L’Instrument Financier pour l’Environnement). The signature was announced today at a bilateral meeting between EIB Vice-President Thomas Östros and Reinis Bērziņš, Chairman of ALTUM’s Management Board.

The EIB has signed a EUR 10 million financing agreement with AS HansaMatrix of Latvia, to expand its manufacturing capacity and build a more all-round business model. The facility is made possible by the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), the core of the Investment Plan for Europe, and was supported in the initial stages by Latvian investment agency ALTUM.