|
 Nhan
Dan Online – The European Investment Bank (EIB) is providing
a EUR 100 million loan for Vietnam to finance investments
that will contribute to the mitigation of climate change in
the country.
The loan agreement was signed in
Hanoi today by Francisco de Paula Coelho, EIB Director for
Lending Operations in Asia and Tran Xuan Ha, Deputy Minister
of Finance.
Accordingly, the ministry will
make available the proceeds of the EIB’s framework loan to
four State-owned banks, who will on-lend the funds to final
beneficiaries carrying out investments that contribute to
one of the following objectives: mitigating climate change
through projects in the renewable energy and energy
efficiency sectors, which would account for at least 70% of
the loan amount or supporting European presence in Vietnam
through direct investment or transfers of technology and
know-how from Europe, which would account for up to 30% of
the loan.
|
The four
State-owned banks include the Vietnam Development
Bank (VDB), the Vietnam Bank for Agriculture and
Rural Development (Agribank), the Bank for
Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) and the
Vietnam Bank for Industry and Trade (Vietinbank) |
The EIB director said that both
objectives were set in the EU Mandate to lend in Asia and
Latin America.
He praised the co-operation of
Vietnam’s Ministry of Finance and stressed: “The framework
loan will make long-term loans at attractive interest rates
available to support renewable energy and energy efficiency
projects, a priority for the Bank’s lending”.
Addressing the signing ceremony,
Deputy Minister Tran Xuan Ha emphasised that the loan also
showed the EIB’s confidence in Vietnam’s economic
development.
This is the EIB’s second lending
operation with the Ministry of Finance, which received a EUR
30 million credit line in 2005 for financing small and
medium scale projects. The line was also allocated through
intermediary banks, including Agribank and BIDV.
The EIB started operations in
Vietnam in 1996.
Truong Son |
