The European Investment Bank (EIB) Group announced €800 million in new financing for a series of projects to support climate action in Argentina, Brazil, and Chile.

The announcement was made during the European Union-Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) Summit of Heads of State and Government. Each of the projects are part of the EU’s Global Gateway initiative, which aims to mobilize up to €300 billion of investments from EU institutions and member states for sustainable and high quality projects to tackle global challenges including climate change, improving health systems and boosting the security of global supply chains.

Following the EIB’s announcement, the organization has revealed two new initiatives, including a €300 million loan to Banco Santander Brasil to fund the installation of small-scale self-consumption solar photovoltaic plants on residential homes and SME business premises, and funding of €300 million to support the energy transformation in Chile by financing green mortgages and supporting green hydrogen development.

Ricardo Mourinho Félix, EIB Vice-President, said:

“I’m very pleased to announce this project with Banco Santander (Brasil) that will enable private sector investments in renewable energy, reduce carbon emissions and air pollution, and support additional renewable generation capacity in Brazil. This operation under EIB Global, the arm of the EIB created in 2022 for activities outside the European Union, builds on our global climate engagement and our support for climate action in Brazil over the last three decades.”

Werner Hoyer, President of the EIB, said:

“I am proud to see the cooperation between the European Union and Chile growing through investments in climate and new green technology. These initiatives demonstrate how Team Europe and Global Gateway can bring value to partners like Chile in their ambitious climate action agenda.”

In 2019, EIB decided to increase its level of climate and environment commitment, effectively transforming the group from being “an EU Bank supporting climate” into “The EU Climate Bank.” In 2020, the EIB’s board of directors approved the EIB Group Climate Bank Roadmap, which guides future climate action financing by the EIB and European Investment Fund (EIF), supporting €1 trillion of climate and environmental sustainability investments by 2030, and aligns all financing activities with the principles and goals of the Paris climate agreement.