EBRD First Vice President visits Greece

• The EBRD’s First Vice President will also speak at the Delphi Economic Forum on Friday 28 April.  

Ahead of the trip, Mr Rigterink said: “I am very glad to be back in Greece this week. This visit provides an opportunity for me to highlight the results we achieved in partnership with the country, and to reiterate the EBRD’s continuous support for Greece’s ambitious green energy transition agenda, its economic recovery and the implementation of NextGenerationEU. It also allows me to hear first-hand from the government and EBRD clients about the challenges they face.” 

The EBRD is working with the Greek authorities on implementing the country’s Recovery and Resilience Plan, part of the European Union (EU)’s Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), and on deploying the funding to the Greek economy. 

Investments under the EU RRF include: a €12 million loan to Papoutsanis to allow the continued upgrade of its production systems and reduce its energy consumption; a €10 million loan to A. Hatzopoulos to support its transition to more sustainable products and reduce energy consumption; and a €150 million loan to OTE to promote digital transformation, green transition and regional inclusion.  

Other recent highlights of the Bank’s work in the country include investments in the banking sector, such as €10 million in credit protection to Piraeus Bank to support its capital resilience and increase its lending capacity; and a €20 million participation in a green bond issue by Lamda Development to back the company’s investment in sustainability and climate resilience.  

The EBRD started operating in Greece on a temporary basis in 2015 to support the country’s economic recovery. To date, the Bank has invested more than €6.5 billion in over 100 projects in the corporate, financial, energy and infrastructure sectors.