Spain: EIB Group and Santander provide €163 million to support energy efficiency projects

February 28, 2025 by European Investment Bank Leave a Comment

This article is published in association with European Investment Bank.

The EIB Group has invested €121 million in an asset-backed securitisation operation by Santander.
This EIB Group investment will enable Santander to mobilise some €163 million to promote green loans for real estate.
The operation will support energy efficiency and sustainability projects in Spain’s residential real estate market.

The EIB Group – made up of the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Investment Fund (EIF) – signed a new synthetic securitisation operation with Santander to provide financing for energy efficiency investments in the Spanish real estate sector, including the construction of new near zero-emission buildings and the renovation of existing residential properties to meet sustainability standards.

The operation will allow new green and sustainable mortgages to be granted to individuals investing in the renovation or construction of buildings with high energy efficiency standards that meet the eligibility conditions set by the EIB.

The projects financed by this operation will improve energy efficiency, reduce CO₂ emissions and help mitigate climate change. The operation contributes to EIB Group priorities such as climate action, cohesion and developing the securitisation market in Europe.

The EIB’s commitment amounts to around €76 million, while the EIF has committed €45 million. The full EIB Group investment is being executed in a single securitisation, optimally structured to give Santander capital relief on a portfolio of residential mortgages. Under the transaction, the EIB Group will provide a €121 million unfunded guarantee in a mezzanine tranche with the goal of enabling Santander to finance new energy efficiency investments for an amount equal to 1.34 times the size of the EIB Group guarantee.

Background information

EIB

The European Investment Bank (ElB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union, owned by its Member States. Built around eight core priorities, we finance investments that contribute to EU policy objectives by bolstering climate action and the environment, digitalisation and technological innovation, security and defence, cohesion, agriculture and bioeconomy, social infrastructure, high-impact investments outside the European Union, and the capital markets union.

The EIB Group, which also includes the European Investment Fund (EIF), signed nearly €89 billion in new financing for over 900 high -impact projects in 2024, boosting Europe’s competitiveness and security.

All projects financed by the EIB Group are in line with the Paris Climate Agreement, as pledged in our Climate Bank Roadmap. Almost 60% of the EIB Group’s annual financing supports projects directly contributing to climate change mitigation, adaptation, and a healthier environment.

Fostering market integration and mobilising investment, the Group supported a record of over €100 billion in new investment for Europe’s energy security in 2024 and mobilised €110 billion in growth capital for startups, scale-ups and European pioneers. Approximately half of the EIB’s financing within the European Union is directed towards cohesion regions, where per capita income is lower than the EU average.

In Spain, the EIB Group signed €12.3 billion of new financing for more than 100 high-impact projects in 2024, helping power the country’s green and digital transition and promote economic growth, competitiveness and better services for inhabitants.

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About Santander

Banco Santander (SAN SM) is a leading commercial bank, founded in 1857 and headquartered in Spain and one of the largest banks in the world by market capitalization. The group’s activities are consolidated into five global businesses: Retail & Commercial Banking, Digital Consumer Bank, Corporate & Investment Banking (CIB), Wealth Management & Insurance and Payments (PagoNxt and Cards). This operating model allows the bank to better leverage its unique combination of global scale and local leadership. Santander aims to be the best open financial services platform providing services to individuals, SMEs, corporates, financial institutions and governments. The bank’s purpose is to help people and businesses prosper in a simple, personal and fair way. Santander is building a more responsible bank and has made a number of commitments to support this objective, including raising €220 billion in green financing between 2019 and 2030. At the end of 2024, Banco Santander had €1.3 trillion in total funds, 173 million customers, 8,000 branches and 207,000 employees.

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