(l-r) Gligor Bishev, Chairman of the Management Board of Sparkasse Bank Makedonija and Anca Ioana Ionescu, Head of the EBRD office in Skopje at the signing.
€5 million loan to boost household energy efficiency and mortgage lending
Sparkasse Bank Makedonija has become the first Macedonian bank to receive EBRD financing for home energy efficiency through a €2 million loan to support investments in energy-saving improvements in the residential sector.
The loan comes under the EBRD’s Green Energy Financing Facility for the Western Balkans. The initiative is designed to help local households, housing associations and service providers invest in energy efficiency measures and renewable energy projects. Loans are provided via local financial institutions and are backed by incentives from the European Union on successful completion of renovation projects.
In addition, the EBRD is providing a €3 million loan to supply Sparkasse with long-term funding for mortgage lending operations.
Anca Ioana Ionescu, Head of the EBRD office in Skopje, said: “This is the first time the EBRD is extending funds to support retail lending by a Macedonian bank. Together with Sparkasse we aim to expand lending to the residential sector: both for the financing of mortgages and energy-saving improvements in people’s homes. We welcome Sparkasse’s commitment to working with us as we encourage Macedonian households to invest in energy-saving home improvements that will also save money, make homes more comfortable and help the environment.”
Gligor Bishev, Chairman of the Management Board of Sparkasse Bank Makedonija, said: "Although the funds from these credit lines are intended for lending to households through the approval of purpose loans for energy-saving and housing, Sparkasse Bank will support companies that produce energy efficient products and the construction of apartments. This should contribute to higher economic growth and the opening of new job positions”.
Sparkasse is among FYR Macedonia’s systemic banks and covers all major cities in the country. It is owned by Steiermärkische Bank und Sparkassen AG, an Austrian savings bank backed by Erste Group.
The EBRD is a major institutional investor in FYR Macedonia. To date, it has invested €1.6 billion in more than 100 projects in the country.
