The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Union (EU) are extending their support to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine to EUR 1.15 billion, the EBRD has said in a press release.
A total of almost EUR 1.1 billion is provided in credit lines and trade finance under the EU4Business programme and EUR 58.3 million in EU grants.
The first phase of the SME program foresaw EUR 380 million financing by the EBRD and EUR 19.4 of EU grants.
“We are pleased to announce the extension of our successful programme of access to finance supporting reforms important for the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area to function. The EU4Business-EBRD Credit line has allowed SMEs in sectors such as manufacturing, retail, agriculture and food processing, transport, services and health care to improve their products, strengthen their export potential and adopt EU standards and technical norms,” Deputy Director-General for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations of the European Commission Katarína Mathernová said at a high-level conference in Tbilisi on Wednesday.
As reported, the EBRD in 2017 invested EUR 800 million in Ukraine, which is 37% more than a year ago.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) seeks to organize financing for 10 or 20 bio-energy projects in Ukraine in coming four years, EBRD Associate Director for Energy Efficiency and Climate Change in Ukraine, Poland and Caucasus Sergiy Maslichenko has told Interfax-Ukraine.
“We are taking part in financing of projects on construction of wind farms and solar power plants. These projects will be financed in the future. Now we want to focus more on bio-energy projects – biogas, bio-mass, production of next generation bio-ethanol [from waste]. We seek to finance 10 or 20 these projects in coming three or four years,” he said.
Maslichenko recalled that studies show that a potential of bio-energy in Ukraine (husk, straw and other agricultural waste) equals to 30 million tonnes of oil equivalent.
Earlier the EBRD organized financing for eight projects in this sphere in Ukraine. Now the bank is mulling three or four more projects.
“At the same time, practice shows that market participants do not have enough knowledge and competence in this area. We intend to prepare a special program by the end of the year. It will provide, among other things, experts and technical assistance. Possibly, a SEO-club for bioenergy will be organized,” the associate director of the EBRD said.
As reported, in December the EBRD decided to provide a loan of EUR 25 million to the agricultural holding Myronivsky Hliboproduct for the construction of a 10 MW biogas plant in Vinnytsia region.
