The President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, H.E. Mr Nursultan Nazarbayev, Kazakhstan’s Secretary of State and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Kanat Saudabayev, and European Investment Bank (EIB) President Philippe Maystadt met today in Brussels for the signature of the framework agreement providing the basis for future EIB lending in Kazakhstan.
EIB President Philippe Maystadt commented: "Kazakhstan is an important partner for the European Union, as set out in the EU’s Central Asia strategy, and it is natural therefore for the EIB, the EU’s bank, to play its part in cementing these ties. This agreement means that we will now be able to actively look for and consider financing eligible projects in the country.”
The EU Council of Ministers decided in November 2008 to extend the EIB’s external lending mandate to the five Central Asian countries for selected projects of common interest in the energy and environment sectors – a decision that was confirmed by the Council and European Parliament in July 2009. The existing mandate provides for a maximum of EUR 1 billion in loans in Asia, including Central Asia, over the period 2007-13. The European Commission is due to present proposals to revise this mandate at the end of April. In addition, the EIB’s own facility for energy sustainability and security of supply, which has a volume of EUR 3 billion, can be expected to provide finance to a number of energy projects in Kazakhstan, subject to compliance with EIB lending criteria.
The EIB subjects all projects it finances to due diligence to ensure that they comply with relevant technical, economic, financial, environmental, procurement and social standards. In Central Asia the EIB is also committed to working closely with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the Asian Development Bank.
Note to editors:
The European Investment Bank (EIB) was founded in 1958 under the Treaty of Rome establishing the European Community. The main objective of the EIB is to contribute towards the integration, balanced development and economic and social cohesion of the 27 European Union Member States. Outside the Union, in some 130-partner countries, the EIB works towards the implementation of the European Union's cooperation and development policies. In 2009 it lent nearly EUR9 bn to projects in partner countries around the world. For more information, see: www.eib.org/central-asia.