EBRD, EIB and AFD approve €35m loan to BCP

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has teamed up with the Agence Française de Développement (AFD) and the European Investment Bank (EIB) for further strengthening Morocco’s sustainable energy sector, with European Union Neighbourhood Investment Facility (EUNIF) support.

The three financial institutions will be providing a €35m financial assistance to Banque Centrale Populaire (BCP), a major bank in Morocco.

This is the fourth time that BCP will be receiving financial assistance under Morocco Sustainable Energy Financing Facility (MorSEFF), which is a comprehensive programme for sustainable energy investments through financial institutions.

EBRD director for financial institutions in SEMED and the Caucasus Mike Taylor said: “We are very pleased to further support energy efficiency in Morocco with a second loan to our partner BCP, promoting best practice and raising awareness about the advantages of sustainable energy investment.

“MorSEFF benefits from the expertise that the EBRD has accumulated in similar schemes through which we have invested €19bn in sustainable energy. Of this amount, €4bn has been made available through SEFFs to more than 100 financial intermediaries in 24 countries.”

The investment will be used by BCP for on-lend to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and corporates in the commercial and industrial sectors

BCP will also receive additional support from EU NIF and by the EBRD Southern and Eastern Mediterranean (SEMED) Multi-Donor Fund that will be used towards designing business development tools and the successful implementation of the facility.

It will also help BCP clients as they would receive support for project implementation, and investment incentives, encouraging them to make sustainable energy investments.

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Image: EBRD, EIB and AFD approve loan to BCP. Photo: courtesy of European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.