MANNHEIM SOCIAL AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING

The project will finance the municipal social and affordable rental housing programme. The investments will include the construction of new housing units and the upgrade of existing ones, as well as associated infrastructure (kindergartens).

The operation is expected to finance a comprehensive investment programme aiming at alleviating the shortages in municipal social and affordable housing supply. The investments will address existing need from low and modest income groups, thus contributing to social inclusion of deprived households. The new housing units as well as the retrofitting interventions will be in line with contemporary living standards, in particular concerning energy efficiency, safety/security and accessibility. The investments will need to satisfy the EIB's eligibility criteria for urban renewal and sustainable communities. The housing investments concerned are envisaged to form part of specific local integrated urban development plans.

National environmental legislation has been harmonised in line with the relevant EU Directives, in particular the environmental impact assessment (EIA) 2011/92/EU Directive and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) 2001/42/EC. The EIB's appraisal will focus on the Promoter's environmental management capacity to properly apply the EU SEA Directive 2001/42/EC, the EU EIA Directive 2011/92/EU, as well as the requirements of the EU Habitats Directive 92/43/EEC and EU Birds Directive 2009/147/EC, where appropriate. The status of any environmental studies and public consultations related to the housing investments will be reviewed during project appraisal. Applicable energy efficiency requirements in line with the EU Directive on the Energy Performance of Buildings (recast) 2010/31/EU will also be further assessed during project appraisal.

The promoter has been assessed by the EIB as being a private company not being subject to EU rules on public procurement or concessions.