Terms and conditions of the EBRD Green Economy Financing Facility (GEFF) for requesting an investment incentive (grant)

This document aims to inform about the rules for grant payments to Sub-borrowers of the Green Economy Financing Facility (GEFF).

By using a GEFF loan and/or by applying for an investment incentive you confirm you have read these Terms and Conditions, accept them in full, and declare yourself to be legally bound to them.

1         Abbreviations, Definitions

Dwelling: privately owned house or apartment

EBRD: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development; EBRD is the owner of GEFF and the Verification Management System (VMS)

EU: European Union

GEFF: Green Economy Financing Facility

PFI: Participating Financial Institution

FC: Facility Consultant (The Facility Consultant administers the GEFF Program on behalf of EBRD)

Sub-borrower: Individual who applies for a loan and grant under the GEFF Program

Sub-project: the energy efficiency measure or measures that the Sub-borrower wants to implement under the GEFF Program

Sub-loan: Loan approved by the PFI under the Facility to finance a Sub-project

Technology Selector: Western Balkan Technology Selector (TS). An online database that lists pre-approved eligible technologies. The TS was developed by the EBRD and is maintained by the Facility Consultant.

VMS: Verification Management System (an online tool through which the Sub-borrower unloads the documents required for the verification)

2         Eligible Sub-borrowers

Individuals: private individuals or groups of individuals recognized under the national laws with access to the building in respect of which they intend to perform a Sub-project.

Housing Associations: a housing association, or other equivalent body, in each case, which represents the interests of residents registered under the national laws intending to perform a Sub-project.

Construction companies: any construction company which constructs eligible residential dwellings or buildings.

Public Sub-borrowers: a public entity if it meets the following requirements: municipalities; or it is formed under the national laws and operating primarily in country and majority-owned or controlled by a local government body, municipality, or by another political, governmental or administrative body, agency or sub-division thereof (including public utilities).

3         Eligible Sub-projects

A Sub-project may be eligible if it:

• is comprised of technologies, equipment and materials listed in the technology selector (“Pre-Approved Technologies”); or has been determined as eligible by the Facility Consultant during an assessment of eligibility;
• is financially viable, namely meeting the PFI’s usual credit criteria and assessed positively by the PFI in accordance with its usual credit appraisal procedures;
• has not benefitted, or will not benefit, from any grant and/or investment incentive (other than the donor contribution);
• is not duplicated in another Sub-project implemented by the same Sub-borrower in the same building or dwelling;
• is in compliance with all relevant national standards and regulations (incl. national environmental, social and health & safety regulation);
• Where Sub-loans are made to public entities and where EBRD does not have a legal agreement with such public entities, procurement for the investment covered by such Sub-loans must be carried out in accordance with the applicable national public procurement laws and regulations.

4         Ineligible Sub-projects

A Sub-loan may not be made for the purpose of financing the following:

• production and/or trade of arms or military equipment;
• financial institutions or financial services companies;
• insurance business;
• production or export of tobacco or hard liquor;
• sale of tobacco or hard liquor (other than where the sale of tobacco or hard liquor is ancillary to the entity’s primary business activity);
• casinos or other gambling facilities;
• speculative investments in property or currencies or any other speculative investment activities;
• investments in securities of any kind, including investments in share capital of other companies;
• any activities appearing on the EBRD Environmental and Social Exclusion List contained in Appendix 1 of the EBRD’s Environmental and Social Policy dated May 2014;
• any activities appearing on the list of environmentally or socially sensitive activities contained in Appendix 2 of the EBRD’s Environmental and Social Policy dated May 2014 (the use of proceeds of any Sub-loan involving a Sub-project, described in Paragraph 13 (fourth bullet point) of EBRD Performance Requirement 9 shall also satisfy the requirements of EBRD Performance Requirements 1 through 8 and 10).

In addition, a Sub-loan may not be made for the purpose of financing:

• investments in Greenfield Investments;
• purchase of land;
• investments in real estate solely with the aim of making short- or medium-term profit on sales (exception: eligible Sub-loans to Construction Companies);
• refinancing (or other type of replacement/consolidation) of any existing term loan or credit operations of the Sub-borrower;
• investment in business premises;
• investment in dwellings which are or will be used as business premises.
• value added tax (“VAT”), to the extent that VAT is recoverable.

5         GEFF Loans

Loan Originators

GEFF loans are granted (originated) by Participating Financial Institutions (PFIs). The exclusive list of PFIs can be found on the national GEFF websites.

Loans granted by other banks are not qualified to be GEFF loans.

Loan Purpose

Sub-loans for eligible investments are undertaken in or in relation to:

(a) residential dwellings or buildings (“Residential Sector Sub-projects”). Only loans with the exclusive purpose to finance the purchase and correct installation of highly energy-efficient materials and equipment (as listed on the Technology Selector or has been determined as eligible by the Facility Consultant) qualified to be GEFF loans.

(b) public entities (“Public Sector Sub-projects”).

(c) residential dwelling or building (“Construction Companies Sub-projects”).

6         Investment Incentive (grants)

Purpose

GEFF Sub-borrowers are entitled to receive a grant upon the full and correct completion and implementation of the energy efficiency and renewable energy project in line with the documentary evidence provided with the verification request.

All technologies/measures must contribute substantially to the overall savings of the Sub- project.

Proofs of Project Completion

Completion of each Sub-project must be supported with appropriate documentary evidence.

The following documents are required for a successful verification (please note that the required documents depend on the project type):

• Application form;
• Invoice(s) that show the final costs for the eligible technologies that were installed as well as auxiliary costs, including labour costs;
• Proof of payment (fiscal receipt/bank transfer confirmation/bank payment order stamped and signed by bank/POS slip/e-banking payment order or any other legally acceptable document);
• Eligibility Certificate from the GEFF Technology Selector;
• Energy performance certificate according to the EU Directive on Energy Performance of Buildings or relevant national regulations (if applicable or required by the local legislation);
• Annex named “GEFF Technology Specification and Sub-loan Calculation” for new construction of individual or multi-apartment buildings;
• Purchasing contract for an apartment (if applicable);
• Utilisation Permission (if applicable);
• Other documents as requested by the Facility Consultant.

If the Sub-borrower fails to provide the requested documents or provides documents that are incorrect/unreliable or that do not correspond to the installation done on the Sub-project location, the Sub-project will be rejected.

7         Verification of Sub-projects

In order to receive an investment incentive (grant), the Sub-borrower has to explicitly apply for it by submitting a verification request. The online Verification Management System (VMS) which is available via the local GEFF website should be used by individual Sub-borrowers for the submission of the verification request.

Grant Verification Process

Grant verification process is done by the Facility Consultant upon submission of completed verification request in the VMS. Each verification request is subject to either on-site or desk-based verification.

In the absence of error or fraud, the Facility Consultant’s decision regarding the successful implementation and completion (or otherwise) of any Sub-project shall be final and binding on the PFI and the Sub-borrower.

Restrictions on investment incentives

No investment incentive shall be payable to the Sub-borrowers in respect of any of the following:

• Sub-projects related to the purchase of domestic appliances and other Sub-project components not eligible under GEFF;
• Sub-loans to Vendors or Producers;
• renewable energy Sub-projects that can benefit from a national support mechanism (including feed-in tariffs or grants from the city, municipality, etc.);
• a Sub-loan financed, in whole or in part, from repayments received from a Sub-loan;
• the implementation and completion of the relevant Sub-project is not verified by the Facility Consultant on or before the deadline agreed between the PFI and EBRD;
• the Sub-project fails verification;
• the Sub-loan is prepaid prior to verification of the Sub-project;
• additional disbursement on the Sub-loan reported after the notification of completion and the confirmation of the Sub-loan amount by the PFI prior to the commencement of the verification process;
• a Sub-borrower is subject to a conflict of interest;
• Sub-loans signed and disbursed before the date of PFI’s Agreement with EBRD;
• no or insufficient funds are drawn down by the PFI where the Sub-loan was disbursed;
• the Sub-loan is disbursed after the final repayment date of the PFI’s Loan with EBRD.

In addition, the following list of situations will lead to the rejection of the grant payment:

• Sub-projects which are duplicated in another Sub-project implemented by the same Sub-borrower in the same building or dwelling;
• Sub-projects which do not comply with GEFF eligibility criteria;
• Sub-project/technologies that are not intended to be implemented permanently and were removed after implementation;
• the Sub-borrower has provided untrue information, including false documents, declarations and representations;
• the Sub-borrower is not able to provide proper evidence of successful completion of the project at the declared dwelling;
• the Sub-borrower is not able to provide photos according to the GEFF photo manual;
• the Sub-borrower did not install the technologies listed in the documentary evidence submitted with the verification request at the declared dwelling;
• the Sub-borrower during or as the result of the project has violated building norms and/or relevant health & safety regulations;
• the Sub-borrower has used the loan to refinance another debt;
• the Sub-borrower has not granted the Facility Consultant access to the dwelling in case her / his request has been selected for on-site verification;
• the Facility Consultant cannot or does not confirm the successful implementation or completion of a Sub-project.
• the Sub-borrower has used the funds to invest in business premises.

8         Grant Calculation Process

The calculation of the grant will be conducted by the Facility Consultant during the verification of the Sub-project. The exact amount of investment incentives payable to Sub-borrowers will be calculated upon submission of the Verification Request Form and all necessary documents.

Individual Sub-borrowers implementing an eligible Sub-project in their dwelling are eligible to receive an investment incentive payment/grant up to 20% of the lower of (A) the disbursed amount of the Sub-loan, and (B) the verified investment cost of the Sub-project.

Housing Associations and Service Providers and Individuals implementing a building level Sub-project for a building are eligible to receive an investment incentive payment/grant up to 35% of the lower of (A) the disbursed amount of the Sub-loan, and (B) the verified investment cost of the Sub-project.

Construction Company Sub-borrowers implementing an eligible Sub-project in the construction of new dwelling are eligible to receive an investment incentive payment up to 10% of the lower of (A) the disbursed amount of the Sub-loan, and (B) the verified investment cost of the Sub-project.

Public Entities Sub-borrowers implementing an eligible Sub-project are eligible to receive an investment incentive payment up to 15% of the lower of (A) the disbursed amount of the Sub-loan, and (B) the verified investment cost of the Sub-project.

For more information on the grant percentage, visit the website of the Partner Financial Institutions (PFI).

The calculation of the grant amount is conducted in 2 steps:

Step 1: calculation of the verified eligible investment costs based on the documentary evidence and/or an on-site visit;

Step 2: calculation of the grant amount based on the verified eligible investment costs and the applicable grant percentage.

The result of the grant calculation process is the EUR equivalent of the grant to be paid to the Sub-borrower for successful completion of Sub-project.

9         Grant Payment Process

Grants are paid to the Sub-borrower’s account at the PFI where the GEFF loan originated. The Sub-borrower is responsible for ensuring an account for grant disbursement.

Grant payments occur once a month. Grants approved by Facility Consultant as of the end of each month will be included in the payment to the PFI.

10     Misuse of Donor Funds

Any investment incentive paid to a Sub-borrower has to be repaid by the Sub-borrower in case of:

• an investment incentive has been unduly paid to or incorrectly used by the Sub-borrower;
• an investment incentive has been paid based on incorrect/fraudulent verification documents;
• any investment incentive that has been paid for Sub-projects (technologies) that are not intended to be implemented permanently or were removed after implementation.

11     Grant Appeal Process

A grant appeal process can be initiated by the Sub-borrower in case of disagreement with either the amount of the approved grant or the rejection of a grant decided by the Facility Consultant.

Grant appeal should be directed at the Participating Financial Institution where the Sub-borrower applied for a Sub-loan.

The Sub-borrower can also appeal to the Facility Consultant. The grant appeal option is available for the Sub-borrower within 10 calendar days from the day the decision of Facility Consultant is communicated to the Sub-borrower. Within this period the Sub-borrower can send an electronic message stating her / his objection to the decision and providing a brief narrative explanation of why s/he does not agree with the decision. The Sub-borrower can also provide any calculations and/or documents s/he deems appropriate to support the objection.

The following email addresses are to be used:

Kosovo – xk@ebrdgeff.com

Bosnia and Herzegovina – bih@ebrdgeff.com

Albania – albania@ebrdgeff.com

Serbia – serbia@ebrdgeff.com

North Macedonia – mk@ebrdgeff.com

Montenegro – mne@ebrdgeff.com   

FC reviews the appeal from the Sub-borrower within 15 business days and produces a written response to the Sub-borrower.

In case the Sub-borrower is not satisfied with the result of the Facility Consultant’s review, s/he can send the appeal within 30 days to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD):

Belinda Sykes

European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)

United Kingdom

Email: sykesb@ebrd.com

Appeals can be submitted in the following languages: Local language or English.

12     Confidentiality and Privacy Policy

All information received by the Facility Consultant from Participating Financial Institutions and from individual Sub-borrowers will be treated with all necessary caution to ensure confidential storage and processing and not to allow unauthorized access to personal, financial, and other sensitive data.

Following the provisions of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) information is provided on which personal data the Facility Consultant may gather and for which purpose it may be processed during the visit and use of VMS.

The following Personal Data is collected:

Contact data

ID number, name and surname, Personal Identification Number, contact phone number, contact email, residence address (country, city and street nr), account number, the address where the project was implemented and other information that may be part of mentioned documents relating to the purpose of the investment.

Project data

Invoices, technical documentation of the purchased product, photographs of the implemented project, as well as business reports all containing information about personal and financial data, as well as data relating to purchased products.

Financial data

Financial data refers to the signed Sub-loan amount, Sub-loan signing date, Sub-loan disbursement date, Sub-loan disbursed, total investment costs and internal Sub-loan ID.

All other documents, information and data that may be reasonably requested.

Personal Data is used for the purpose of processing the application for a grant payment and in the event of follow-up questions, we process the personal data obtained for this purpose for the fulfilment of contractual obligations, or more specifically on the basis of legitimate interests.

Personal Data collected through the use of VMS will not be shared with third parties, except the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and/or unless it is required for the fulfilment of processing the application for grant payment, and/or required by the Green Economy Finance Facility and/or required to comply with mandatory laws/authority requests.

Personal Data is stored for as long as needed for the fulfilment of the abovementioned purposes and legal obligations.

The Sub-borrower has the right to access the personal data concerning him/her that is being processed. Additionally, the Sub-borrower has the right to rectification of inaccurate data and to erase data (“right to be forgotten”) if appropriate. Further, the Sub-borrower can withdraw consent declarations at any time without stating a reason in order to hinder further processing of personal data that has been collected and used based on a consent declaration. The Sub-borrower can furthermore be entitled to the right to restriction of processing of personal data as well as the right to receive the personal data concerning him/her in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format (“data portability”).

Apart from that the Sub-borrower has the right to lodge a complaint with the responsible supervisory authority.

13     General Provisions and Liability

The Sub-borrower acknowledges that he/she does not have any legal claim to receiving grant payment(s). The usage of VMS does not constitute a contract between the Sub-borrower and EBRD, the Facility Consultant or any other third party.

The Sub-borrower does not have any legal claim to access, usage and/or functionality of VMS. Access to and use of VMS may be impaired by unforeseeable and/or exceptional circumstances or technical maintenance and may be refused or terminated at any time without reason. The Sub-borrower must respect and comply with the applicable laws when using VMS. The Sub-borrower acknowledges that misuse of VMS may have legal consequences and may be prosecuted.

EBRD or the Facility Consultant shall not be liable for the functionality of VMS and/or for the completeness and accuracy of data made available by the applicant on VMS. EBRD or the Facility Consultant shall not be liable for any disadvantages and/or damages incurred by the Sub-borrower as a result of incorrect, incomplete, erroneously or belatedly (uploaded) data or documents.

In the case of any inconsistency between the English version and the translation in local language, the English version shall prevail.