Board agrees 2011 lending target for EIB, climate action remains key priority

At its annual meeting today the Board of Governors of the European Investment Bank (EIB) agreed the Bank’s 2011 lending targets which foresee a gradual return to pre-crisis levels. After the extraordinary lending volume of EUR 79bn in 2009 and EUR 72bn in 2010, the EIB is planning for a total of EUR 63bn this year.  

“This reflects our plan to gradually reduce lending volumes to pre-crisis levels, as our crisis response package was always designed as a targeted and temporary measure for 2009 and 2010”, said EIB President Philippe Maystadt.

The EIB will pursue three strategic objectives in support of the EU policy agenda:

• “Europe 2020” strategy: with the key challenge to boost employment and productivity, notably by investing more and better in education, research and innovation.
• Climate action: the fight against climate change will continue to be a top priority for the Bank. In 2010, nearly 30 percent of the lending volume was related to projects significantly contributing to the reduction of green house gas emissions. In the first quarter of this year, the EIB also hit this benchmark.(1)
• EU´s external policy: subject to the approval of a EUR 1 bn increase in its lending ceiling for the Mediterranean region, the EIB would be able to provide around EUR 5.8bn to the Mediterranean countries in the period 2011-2013, with a special focus on countries that have made progress in their transition towards a more open and democratic political system.

Statement of the EIB President at the Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors

Note for the editor:

The European Investment Bank is the long-term lending bank of the European Union. Its Board of Governors is composed of the Finance ministers from the 27 EU Member States.  The Bank’s main task is to contribute towards the integration, balanced development and economic and social cohesion of the EU Member States. Besides supporting projects in the Member States, its lending activities also include financing investments in future Member States of the EU and EU partner countries. The EIB raises substantial volumes of funds on the capital markets, which it lends on favourable terms to projects furthering EU policy objectives. The Bank's consistent AAA rating is underpinned by firm shareholder support, a strong capital base, exceptional asset quality, conservative risk management and a sound funding strategy.