- The new care centre for senior citizens will be built to the highest standards of energy efficiency and will be classified as NZEB (Nearly Zero Energy Building).
- Over the past decade, the EIB has invested more than €1 billion in the South Tyrol region.
The European Investment Bank and the municipalities of Brixen, Vahrn, and Lüsen signed today a financing agreement for the new care centre for elderly citizens in the Autonomous Province of Bolzano-South Tyrol. The EIB will lend €30 million for this ambitious project, costing €53 million in total, divided proportionally between the three municipalities.
The new facility is currently under construction and will be operational by the end of 2025. It is located on an area of 14 110 m² and will contain 84 assisted beds as well as 36 beds in seven residential units, with rehabilitation areas, a library, a canteen, a hairdressing service, a playground, and a health centre accessible to local residents.
The project has impressive social and environmental value. The structure, which is certified as NZEB (Nearly Zero Energy Building), will have a photovoltaic system, double-layer insulation and triple glazing systems, ensuring a 50% improvement compared to the minimum requirements of Italy’s national energy regulation.
The EIB financing will be disbursed in five tranches to Centro Anziani Sovracomunale Bressanone-Varna-Luson s.c.a.r.l., a company formed specifically for this purpose by the municipal consortium.
EIB Vice-President Gelsomina Vigliotti said: “This EIB financing aims to help address the demographic challenge of Europe’s aging population by providing a concrete and sustainable solution to the shortage of long-stay beds for older people. With a strong commitment to energy efficiency and the environment, the care centre for senior citizens from Brixen, Vahrn and Lüsen is a model for future sustainable development initiatives in the healthcare sector to be replicated across the country.”
For the mayors of the municipalities concerned – Andreas Jungmann (Brixen), Andreas Schatzer (Vahrn) and Carmen Plaseller (Lüsen) – “the EIB’s decision to support this project confirms the importance of the new senior citizens’ care centre for our communities: a space of innovation and inclusion where the most fragile members of our society are able to feel fully social and independent.”
The EIB in South Tyrol and the rest of the Autonomous Region
Over the past decade, the EIB has financed projects worth over €1 billion in South Tyrol, contributing, for example, to the purchase of trains for STA SpA’s regional railway network, the construction of more than 280 new social housing units in the Autonomous Province, the restructuring of five hydroelectric plants of Alperia SpA with a total installed capacity of 457 MW, the modernisation and expansion of the Province’s electricity distribution and district heating networks, not to mention the major support provided to small businesses and mid-caps in South Tyrol.
In the Autonomous Region of Trentino-South Tyrol, the EIB has also helped modernise facilities at the University of Trento, enhance the electricity distribution network of Dolomiti Energia SpA and facilitate access to credit for small and medium-sized businesses and mid-caps in Trentino. Just last week, the EIB and Mediocredito Trentino-Alto Adige, supported by SACE, signed a €70 million agreement that will help promote environmentally sustainable investments and support the working capital needs of regional companies.
The European Investment Bank (ElB) finances sound investments that contribute to EU policy objectives. EIB projects bolster competitiveness, drive innovation, promote sustainable development, enhance social and territorial cohesion, and support a just and swift transition to climate neutrality. EIB projects bolster competitiveness, drive innovation, promote sustainable development, enhance social and territorial cohesion, and support a just and swift transition to climate neutrality. In the past five years, the EIB Group has provided more than €58 billion in financing for projects in Italy.