Romania was among the top beneficiaries of the European Investment Bank support in 2023 relative to the size of its economy. New financing committed last year reached a record high of 4.1 billion Euro, which corresponds to around 1.3 percent of Romania’s gross domestic product.
President of EIB Nadia Calviño met with President of Romania Klaus Iohannis, Prime Minister Ion-Marcel Ciolacu, and Minister of Finance Marcel-Ioan Boloş to discuss ways in which the EIB Group can further support the country through strategic investments.
Romanian Minister of Finance Marcel-Ioan Boloș said:” Romania will continue to strength its partnership with the European Investment Bank Group for the implementation of reforms and major investments, supporting strategic projects in agriculture, infrastructure, education and health. We rely on EIB for the diversification of the financial products and its involvement in private sector financing. Through continued collaboration, we aim to promote innovation and contribute to energy security and the transition to a sustainable and resilient economy. We highly recognize the EIB major role in energy security and EU strategic autonomy areas, in particular in the current geopolitical context”.
In total, the EIB has committed more than €19 billion in financing for 193 projects in Romania since the start of its operations in the country in 1991. Highlights from last year’s results include over €2 billion worth of agreements to facilitate access to finance for Romanian SMEs and mid-caps, including in agriculture, over €1 billion for sustainable energy and natural resources, and over €1 billion for sustainable cities and regions.
Reflecting the country’s priorities, and the importance of connectivity between cohesion regions in Europe, €800 million was signed in 2023 for safer road transport, including €200 million for the A3 motorway and a €600 million first tranche of the A7 project. These operations are part of a €4 billion financing request that was received by the Bank in 2022 to co-finance projects in the transport and health sectors, which are also backed by EU funding (the Recovery and Resilience Facility and the multiannual financial framework).
