Brussels, 03/11/2008 (Agence Europe) - On Thursday 30 October, the European Investment Bank (EIB) granted a loan of €500 million to the Republic of Latvia to co-finance key investments in the areas of social and economic infrastructure, education, training, promotion of entrepreneurship, transport, the environment and energy. In order to increase the energy efficiency of the country, the EIB had already, the previous week, granted a loan of €100 million to AS Latvenergo for the modernisation of the power distribution network in Latvia. This is the fourth EIB loan to Latvenergo since 1996, when the EIB financed the refurbishment of the Daugava hydropower plants. In a press release, the EIB says that it “attached particular importance to this cooperation to ensure a reliable energy supply for Latvia's citizens and the Baltic region as a whole”. From 2003-2007, the European Investment Bank lent a total of €364 million for projects in Latvia, with 42% of this sum going to priority projects fostering the development of Latvia's economic and social infrastructure, as well as projects in the fields of the environment and trans-European networks that are co-financed by the EU structural and cohesion funds. In all, 41% of loans granted to Latvia were for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and mid-cap companies (those with fewer than 3000 employees). In the energy sector, 17% of ?nancing was directed towards securing sustainable energy supplies, reducing the burden on the environment and promoting the development of combined-cycle cogeneration plants. (O.L./transl.rt)