GREEN SUSTAINABLE INDUSTRY - GSI

The operation is a framework loan managed by the Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency to finance public and private industrial companies in Egypt in the areas of pollution abatement, decarbonisation, energy and resource efficiency.

The aim is to foster sustainable development in the country, by addressing industrial pollution sources affecting the environment and human health, as well as assisting the industry to comply with the national environmental regulations. Additionally, the general objective of the project is to support Egypt's industry transition to a green economy, including actions for climate change and environmental sustainability.

The proposed project under the framework loan contributes to the policy objective ''Innovation, Digital and Human Capital'' by financing environmental pollution abatement, decarbonisation, and resource and energy efficiency technologies for application in the industrial sector in Egypt. The project is strategically aligned with the '' Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument (NDICI) Global Europe'' under the priority area ''Green Transition''. The project is consistent with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (3,6,8,9 and 12) and supports the National Climate Change Strategy to 2050, including Egypt's ''Green Vision 2030''.

The project leads to the deployment of technologies that reduce the negative externalities associated with pollution and CO2 emissions from the industrial sectors in Egypt, such as adverse health outcomes and environmental damage. The provision of concessional financing and the screening of investments will help address the sub-optimal investment situation for deploying these technologies and reduce information asymmetries. It will also send a positive signal to other investors, incentivising them to finance the transition to green and sustainable industries in Egypt.

The EIB provides a flexible financing instrument for investment priorities with long-term maturity covering the entire economic life of assets. The Bank has also helped define the project's scope, eligibility, and other qualifying criteria, including measures to promote gender diversity and draft the terms of reference for preparatory and implementation Technical Assistance. The Bank is in the lead for ensuring EU/NIP grant co-financing.

The outcomes will entail significant improvements in controlling, reducing and preventing the pollution load to air, water and soil as well as lead to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction in existing industries. Most of the investments are expected to be located within the premises of existing industrial sites and are expected to require an environmental impact assessment (EIA) under Egyptian legislation. The promoter has to ensure that implementation of the sub-projects by industrial companies to be in accordance with the EIB's environmental and social standards. Additional evaluation criteria were agreed during the appraisal to streamline the sub-projects with significant positive impact in terms of climate action mitigation and environmental sustainability.

The promoter has to ensure that implementation of the project is done in accordance with the EIB's Guide to Procurement.

The project is covered by the EU Guarantee for EIB loans outside the EU. It comprises an investment component financially managed by an intermediary bank and a technical assistance (TA) component aimed at providing project management support. The investment component focuses on offering concessional loans and grants to private and public companies (corporates, mid-caps and small and medium-sized enterprises), as an incentive to carry out green investments. A contribution from the EU Neighbourhood Investment Program is envisaged to support with grants the industry investments and EEAA digitalisation of environmental procedures, and to support project implementation with TA.