The total financing to Greece through the Juncker Plan reaches 1.7 billion euros and is expected to trigger 5.7 billion euros in additional investments, the European Commission said in a tweet on Wednesday, in an update on its investment plan.
The Commission said Greece ranks second in investments triggered by the Plan per euro of GDP. The investment concerns:
Infrastructure and innovation projects: 11 approved projects financed by the European Investment Bank (EIB) with EFSI backing, approximately 1.4 billion euros in total financing set to trigger 3.5 billion euros in total investment.
Small and medium enterprises (SMEs): 9 approved agreements with intermediary banks financed by European Investment Fund (EIF) with EFSI backing and 313 million euros in total financing set to trigger approximately 2.2 billion euros in investments with some 11,298 SMEs and mid-cap companies expected to benefit from improved access to finance.
Among the companies benefiting from EFSI-backed projects in Greece are:
-Viotia wind farm
The EIB is providing Terna Energy Group with a 24-million-euro loan to build three new wind farms in Viotia in central Greece. This project is good for the EU’s low-carbon strategy, and it will sustain dozens of jobs in Greece.
-Cosmote broadband
The EIB is lending Greek telecoms operator Cosmote 150 million euros to roll out high speed broadband across Greece. The financing will significantly increase the network’s performance in terms of speed, capacity and coverage and improve the network’s performance in more rural and remote areas of the country.
-Creta Farms agri-food
EFSI-backed financing totals 15 million euros which are set to trigger total investment of 31 million euros. The EIB is providing agri-food company Creta Farms a 15-million-euro loan to develop new product lines and expand its business abroad. The biggest cold-cuts company in Greece, Creta Farms spends five times as much as its peers on innovative ways to produce healthier meats. It removes saturated animal fats from its meats and injects extra virgin olive oil into them. The company took on 100 extra staff thanks to the new finance.
The Commission said Greece ranks second in investments triggered by the Plan per euro of GDP. The investment concerns:
Infrastructure and innovation projects: 11 approved projects financed by the European Investment Bank (EIB) with EFSI backing, approximately 1.4 billion euros in total financing set to trigger 3.5 billion euros in total investment.
Small and medium enterprises (SMEs): 9 approved agreements with intermediary banks financed by European Investment Fund (EIF) with EFSI backing and 313 million euros in total financing set to trigger approximately 2.2 billion euros in investments with some 11,298 SMEs and mid-cap companies expected to benefit from improved access to finance.
Among the companies benefiting from EFSI-backed projects in Greece are:
-Viotia wind farm
The EIB is providing Terna Energy Group with a 24-million-euro loan to build three new wind farms in Viotia in central Greece. This project is good for the EU’s low-carbon strategy, and it will sustain dozens of jobs in Greece.
-Cosmote broadband
The EIB is lending Greek telecoms operator Cosmote 150 million euros to roll out high speed broadband across Greece. The financing will significantly increase the network’s performance in terms of speed, capacity and coverage and improve the network’s performance in more rural and remote areas of the country.
-Creta Farms agri-food
EFSI-backed financing totals 15 million euros which are set to trigger total investment of 31 million euros. The EIB is providing agri-food company Creta Farms a 15-million-euro loan to develop new product lines and expand its business abroad. The biggest cold-cuts company in Greece, Creta Farms spends five times as much as its peers on innovative ways to produce healthier meats. It removes saturated animal fats from its meats and injects extra virgin olive oil into them. The company took on 100 extra staff thanks to the new finance.