Italy: EIB lends EUR 140 million to Fincantieri for R&D - Montesquieu Institute

The European Investment Bank (EIB) and Fincantieri signed the first EUR 80 million tranche of a EUR 140 loan for financing the Italian shipbuilder’s research and development programmes.

The EIB was represented by Vice-President Dario Scannapieco, who is responsible for operations in Italy, Malta and the Western Balkans, and Fincantieri by its CEO, Giuseppe Bono.

This is the first financing operation ever undertaken by the EIB in Europe to promote R&D by a company in this sector. The project focuses mainly on three areas:

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  technological solutions to improve the energy efficiency and reduce the fuel consumption of ships;
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  the optimisation of ship design, during both the construction and operational stages, so as to increase the safety of vessels and reduce their environmental impact;
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  innovative studies (also relating to design) that can reduce the size and increase the accommodation capacity of ships.

Greater energy efficiency and an improved environmental impact are areas that are fully consistent with the traditional financing activities of the European Union’s bank and will also have the effect of increasing the employment generated by shipbuilding, whose manufacturing operations involve a large number of small and medium-sized enterprises throughout the country.

Background information:

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union owned by its Member States. It makes long-term finance available for sound investment in order to contribute towards EU policy goals.

Press contact:

Marco Santarelli, m.santarelli@eib.org, +39 331 6595594

Website: www.eib.org/press - Press office: +352 4379 21000 - press@eib.org

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