The President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Werner Hoyer, recalled that the Twenty-Seven will "proportionately" replace the share of callable capital that was allocated to the United Kingdom until Brexit, in presenting, on Thursday 30 January, the activity report of the Bank of the European Union for 2019 (see EUROPE 12182/17).
To maintain our level of investment, "the key issue is the callable capital", Hoyer said. We would love to hear about a new increase in capital, "but we're not ‘demandeurs’", he said.
Due to Brexit, Poland and Romania have requested to be able to contribute more to the EIB's capital.
Mr Hoyer reported a substantial increase in EIB Group financing in 2019. These exceeded €72 billion, of which €8.8 billion outside the EU, for a record number - 1,095 - of authorised transactions (+28% compared with 2018). According to the European institution, this financing supports total investment of €280 billion in Europe and worldwide, an increase of €50 billion.
Climate Action. The EU Bank is keen to demonstrate that it is already acting as the EU Climate Bank, an idea put forward by French President Emmanuel Macron.
In 2019, 31% of the funding was allocated to projects contributing to fighting climate change, transforming Europe’s energy markets and mitigating the effects of climate change. The Bank's ambition is to increase this proportion to 50% as of 2025.
Starting at the end of 2020, the EIB's activities will be aligned with the Paris Agreement. "We must make sure that climate is in everything we do", Hoyer said. He also underlined the pioneering role of the institution he chairs in the issuance of 'sustainable' financial securities.
The Bank is the first multilateral bank to have decided to discontinue, as from the end of 2021, the financing of new fossil fuel projects, including gas (see EUROPE 12370/11).
As was discussed and then decided for energy, the EIB will launch a strategic debate on its interventions in the field of transport. Without wishing to comment on the outcome of this debate, Mr Hoyer said he believed that the EIB should focus more on innovative modes of transport.
More info at: http://bit.ly/2S2aTlX (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)