The European Investment Bank (EIB) signed today with the multi-donor fund E5P and the Municipality of Yerevan a pioneering grant agreement of EUR 5m to support an unprecedented upgrading of public buildings in the Armenian capital, Yerevan. The Eastern Europe Energy Efficiency and Environment Partnership, or E5P, is a EUR 200m fund supporting municipal investments in energy efficiency and environmental projects in the Eastern Partnership countries.
The E5P grant represents support additional to the EUR 7m EIB loan signed in December 2017 to help the Municipality of Yerevan finance energy efficiency improvements in public buildings. The grant will finance projects that will increase the energy efficiency and the resilience to earthquakes of kindergartens: 29 kindergarteners will be fully renovated, while 118 will benefit from a lighter renovation, namely energy efficiency measures subject to satisfactory preliminary studies. This will create a much safer and caring environment for approximately 34,500 people, including pupils, teachers and staff members. It will result in primary energy savings of 27,800 MWh a year, reduce CO2 emissions by 5,502 tonnes a year and significantly decrease other greenhouse gas emissions. This will contribute to climate change mitigation and reduce Yerevan’s municipal budget expenditures for energy services by EUR 1.1m.
EIB Vice-President Vazil Hudák commented: “The EU bank, together with its partners, is making a real difference for the people of Armenia. We encourage projects like this one that help to improve the environment and therefore also the quality of life. The 147 Yerevan kindergartens will show the way on energy efficiency and savings because the cheapest energy is the one we avoid generating”.
Head of EU Delegation H.E. Piotr Antoni Switalski stated: “Energy efficiency is the cheapest energy as it’s the one on which money is not spent! New technologies can generate cleaner energy and create jobs, while mobilising stakeholders from the government, international financial institutions, municipalities, civil society and citizens will be the key task for scaling up reforms and investments. The EU has been and will continue supporting energy efficiency measures in Armenia, including for the 21 signatory municipalities of the Covenant of Mayors and more than 6,000 households which have benefited from EU-funded projects. The proposed E5P grant of EUR 5m will thus make affordable the implementation of the refurbishments and renewable energy measures, support Armenia’s investment efforts in demand-side energy management, ensure strong economic impacts at the municipal budget level, and bring positive social and environmental benefits. The EU believes that with a successful large-scale pilot like the one proposed, other cities/actors will be willing to invest as well.”
The project was developed thanks to the results of a study on energy efficiency and renewables financed by the technical assistance grant support from the Eastern Partnership Technical Assistance Trust Fund (EPTATF).
Original source: EIB
Published on 08 June 2018
