EBRD €4 million loan to Partner microfinance institution in Bosnia and Herzegovina

EBRD to lend €4 million to Partner Mikrokreditna Fondacija Tuzla Finance to support green investments that improve the energy efficiency of buildings Loan provided under the EBRD’s Western Balkans Green Economy Financing Facility II

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is supporting green investments in Bosnia and Herzegovina with a €4 million loan to Partner Mikrokreditna Fondacija Tuzla (Partner) through the Bank’s Western Balkans Green Economy Financing Facility (WB GEFF II).

This is the second GEFF line provided to Partner, following the successful implementation of the first. Partner will lend the funds to borrowers in the residential sector – individuals, housing collectives, producers, vendors and service providers – to invest in the installation of high-performance green technologies, materials and solutions in privately-owned residential dwellings and buildings. The full loan amount will be dedicated to green projects.

The renovation of buildings is essential to decarbonise the economy. It was singled out in the European Green Deal as a key means of driving energy efficiency in the sector and delivering on climate objectives. Studies show energy consumption in the building sector in Bosnia and Herzegovina to account for 57 per cent of the country’s total energy consumption, well above the 40 per cent average of the European Union (EU).

The €135 million Western Balkans GEFF supports energy-efficient solutions to build a greener and more sustainable economy. The programme is supported by the EU, the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF) and the Austrian Federal Ministry of Finance. It is also part of the Regional Energy Efficiency Programme (REEP) for the Western Balkans.

To date, the GEFF in Bosnia and Herzegovina has reached more than 3,000 households and provided loans of more than €10 million for individual projects through partner financial institutions. These have contributed to more than 7,800 MWh of energy savings and a reduction of more than 2,700 tonnes of CO₂ emissions per year. The most frequently financed technologies are windows and doors, insulation, biomass boilers and heat pumps.

Partner is the largest microcredit institution in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It has been a partner of the EBRD for more than 10 years and is active across the country as an essential provider of finance.

Manuela Naessl, EBRD Head of Bosnia and Herzegovina, said: “In the week that COP26 is taking place, it is even the more important to contribute to green and sustainable investment. I am very happy that we have signed this important credit line with Partner today, which will further increase green lending in Bosnia and Herzegovina and contribute to energy savings and carbon emission reductions.”

Senad Sinanović, CEO of Partner, said: "Our main motivation for launching and promoting the energy efficiency credit lines was air pollution: the fact that the main cities in our country are often top of the list of the most polluted cities in Europe and the world. With the first EBRD GEFF credit line, we reduced CO₂ emissions by 15,539 tonnes and enabled energy savings of 48,069 MWh. The new credit line is a step towards strengthening our position as leader in the field of energy-efficiency lending and, in particular, raising awareness of the importance of a clean environment and quality service to our customers.”

Since it began operating in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1996, the EBRD has invested more than €2.7 billion in 190 projects across the country.