The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has approved a EUR 5 million credit line to Raiffeisen Bank Kosovo under the Green Economy Financing Facility program.

Raiffeisen Bank will lend the funds to privately owned households for investment in energy efficiency measures, such as insulation, windows, heat pumps, and solar panels. Upon successful completion of the projects, homeowners will be eligible for up to 20% cashback, the bank said.

The credit line is part of a larger EUR 135 million Green Economy Financing Facility (GEFF) program for the Western Balkans, which supports energy-efficient solutions to build a greener and sustainable economy. The program is co-financed by the European Union, the Western Balkans Investment Framework, and the Austrian Federal Ministry of Finance.

More than 8,000 households in the Western Balkans have improved their energy efficiency through the GEFF program

To date, more than 1,000 households in Kosovo* have already made energy efficiency improvements to their homes using GEFF loans. In total, more than 8,000 households in the Western Balkans have improved their energy efficiency through the GEFF progra, investing in projects that contributed to a reduction of nearly 12,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year, equivalent to removing 7,270 cars from the streets.

The GEFF is implemented under the umbrella of the Regional Energy Efficiency Programme for the Western Balkans, funded by the EU and delivered in partnership with the Energy Community Secretariat.

Neil Taylor, EBRD Head of Kosovo, said that Kosovo* simply cannot afford to miss the possibility of a green recovery from the crisis. With the support of our European donors, our goal is to spur a building renovation wave across the country and tackle the blight of poor air quality and pollution, she said.

Robert Wright, the CEO of Raiffeisen Bank Kosovo, added that this initiative is part of the bank’s broader commitment to responsible banking for a sustainable future after Raiffeisen Bank International became the first Austrian bank to commit to the UN principles for responsible banking earlier this year.