The European Investment Bank (EIB) has decided not to finance the Belgrade incinerator project in Vinca because of its negative impact on the environment, a decision that was welcomed by the NGOs Ne Davimo Beograd and CEE Bankwach on Tuesday 29 October.
The EIB has stated that, according to its own assessment and an opinion from the European Commission, the incinerator would prevent Serbia from achieving its environmental recycling and circular economy objectives as part of the candidate country's EU accession process.
"We welcome the EIB and the Commission’s recognition that Belgrade should not be prioritising incineration. We are already suffering from low recycling levels and dire air quality," comments Aleksa Petković from Ne Davimo Beograd in a press release.
On the other hand, loans have recently been granted to the Vinca project by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) (€128.5 million), the International Finance Corporation (IFC) (€72.25 million) and the Austrian Development Bank (OeEB) (€3 million).
The two NGOs had filed a formal complaint with the EBRD, claiming that it had violated its own policies by not avoiding the negative environmental impacts of the Vinca project.
"The EBRD and IFC have persistently claimed that the incinerator would not affect recycling, without providing any evidence. Now the EIB and Commission say the opposite.", says Pippa Gallop of CEE Bankwatch. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)