EIB provided €5.4 billion financing support to Poland in 2019

Loans granted to public and private counterparts by the EIB amounted to €4.3 billion, while the European Investment Fund (EIF) provided €1.1 billion in guarantees and equity investments to small and medium-sized businesses and mid-caps.

€5.4 billion of overall financing 2019 was a strong year for the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group in Poland. The Group's activity was 13 % higher than in the previous year and in line with the trend of the past five years. Loans granted to public and private counterparts by the EIB amounted to €4.3 billion, while the European Investment Fund (EIF) provided €1.1 billion in guarantees and equity investments to small and medium-sized businesses and mid-caps.

Poland was the fifth-biggest recipient of EIB Group financing among EU countries, after Italy, Spain, France, and Germany. This financing represents more than 1% of Poland's GDP, making the country the second-largest beneficiary among countries with a population above 10 million after Greece. This shows the impact of the EU bank's operations.

In the first few months of 2020, new operations were signed in renewable energy production, with a €60 million loan to Pomerania Wind Farm (a subsidiary of the Lithuanian Ignitis group), and in sustainable transport. A €480 million loan to LG Chem for the construction of electric-vehicle batteries in Wroclaw was announced today.

"Last year, the level of activity of the EIB Group in Poland was once again significant. The EU bank-financed important projects in all sectors of the economy, with a particular focus on infrastructure and environment, and with record volumes of loans and guarantees to small and medium-sized businesses. We take these positive results as a motivation to continue to support the Polish economy as it faces the daunting task of fighting the coronavirus crisis," said EIB Vice-President Teresa Czerwińska, who is in charge of operations in Poland following her appointment to the EIB Management Committee on 1 March.

Teresa Czerwińska added: "We will work tirelessly with all our public and private partners in Poland so that we continue to finance projects that help the Polish economy to be more resilient to shocks and more prosperous in the longer term. The EIB stands ready to further support SMEs, who are the most vulnerable economic actors in times of social and economic lockdown. The package announced last week of up to €40 billion for European SMEs is the first step in our commitment. We will do everything we can to combine national and European efforts and I trust that by working together we will overcome the coronavirus crisis, in Poland as well as in Europe."

"2019 was another year of very good cooperation between Poland and the EIB Group," said the Minister of Finance, Tadeusz Kościński. "This is confirmed by figures, with €5.4 billion of financing provided to Polish enterprises, national and local government bodies. This ranks Poland 5th among EU countries. EIB Group financing supported, among others, railway upgrade projects, renewable energy, access to finance for SMEs, scientific research programs and hospital modernization projects. Last year, the role of Poland as the Bank's shareholder also increased. We strengthen our contribution to the management of the Bank. I hope and I am confident that the Bank will continue its support, including its commitment to tackling the challenge of COVID-19 today. "