EIB joins financing of Crete-Attica interconnection project
The European Investment Bank is participating in the financing of the €1 billion Crete-Attica interconnection project.
The EIB has signed a €200 million loan deal with Ariadne Interconnection - a subsidiary of the Independent Power Transmission Operator - which is implementing the project. The loan includes an option of extending the funding by €100 million. The funding is guaranteed by the Greek State and has a duration of 20 years, including a five-year grace period.
The possibility of EIB’s participation in the financing of the project was provided as an option in the loan agreement signed in July 2020 with Eurobank, which was activated ensuring even better financing terms.
Crete-Attica interconnection is the largest energy infrastructure project currently under construction in Greece. Its financing comes from three sources: bank lending, equity and EU funding. The equity amounts to €200 million. As to the bank lending, the project is now co-financed equally by Eurobank and EIB (with €200 million). For the remaining €400 million, the co-financing tools of Greece and the European Union will be deployed.
