Santander Leasing and EBRD stepping up green financing in Poland

• EBRD loan of €80 million to Santander Leasing in Poland
• Investments by SMEs in energy and resource efficiency as well as renewable energy
• Funds under EBRD framework GEFF Poland

The EBRD is helping address the urgent issue of environmental pollution in Poland with a €80 million loan to Santander Leasing S.A., the fifth-largest leasing company by new business volume.

The funds will finance green investments for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and will support progress with moving the Polish economy onto a green and sustainable path of development.

These will include investments in energy efficiency, resource efficiency, renewable energy, water efficiency and waste minimisation, in line with Santander Leasing’s green investment strategy.

The loan is being extended under the Green Economy Financing Facility (GEFF) Poland, which follows the model of the EBRD’s GEFF programme that operates through a network of more than 140 local financial institutions across 26 countries and is supported by almost €4.2 billion of EBRD finance for 130,000 clients. These projects have led to annual CO₂ emission reductions of almost 7 million tonnes.

The EBRD loan will also support efforts by Santander Leasing to strengthen its outreach to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, which are expected to be the primary beneficiaries of leases made available through the EBRD loan.

These companies represent the backbone of the Polish economy, yet often lack the means to invest in state-of-the-art equipment to improve their competitiveness and energy efficiency.

Supporting the green economy is one of the EBRD’s priorities in Poland. To date, the Bank has invested more than €10 billion in the country through 425 projects.