EBRD approves EUR 2 million credit line for household energy efficiency in Kosovo*

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has approved a new EUR 2 million credit line to the Agency for Finance in Kosovo* (AFK) for financing investments in household energy efficiency.

The lending will be approved to homeowners to invest in household energy efficiency measures such as insulation, energy-efficient windows and doors, heat pumps, and solar panels.

Borrowers will be eligible for refunds of up to 20% of the total investment thanks to funding from the European Union (EU), the EBRD has said in a statement.

The credit line is provided under the EBRD’s GEFF program

The loan to AFK is provided under the EBRD’s Green Economy Financing Facility (GEFF) program, which supports energy-efficient ways to create a greener and more sustainable economy. In the Western Balkans alone, the GEFF has a volume of EUR 135 million.

It is supported by the EU, the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF), and the Austrian Federal Ministry of Finance, as part of the Regional Energy Efficiency Program (REEP) for the Western Balkans.

Neil Taylor, EBRD Head of Kosovo*, said the WBIF will continue to improve energy efficiency in the residential sector to reduce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

GEFF has to date lent over EUR 7.7 million for individual projects in Kosovo*

The GEFF in Kosovo*, through its partner financial institutions, has so far reached 960 households and provided loans of more than EUR 7.7 million for individual projects, helping save over 9 GWh of energy and avoid more than 3,100 tons of CO2 emissions a year.

Across the Western Balkans, around 7,900 households have improved their energy efficiency through the GEFF, investing in projects that have contributed to cutting CO2 emissions by more than 11,000 tons per year, according to the EBRD.