In the first half of this year, BCR granted corporate loans worth 5.3 billion lei, out of which 30% were loans for investments, including also investments in renewable energy production units and energy efficiency projects.

“Around 700 companies generating more than 200,000 jobs were financed by us. On the SME side, the loans outstanding grew by 12% in 2023,” said Cătălin Bojoga, Project Finance Manager at BCR, at the conference “Energy Efficiency for Energy Transition” organized in Iași by Energynomics together with the Romanian Energy Efficiency Fund – FREE and the Directorate for Energy Efficiency within the Ministry of Energy.

According to the bank, the benefits of investing in energy efficiency projects include reduced production costs and increased competitiveness, compliance with technical standards and environmental regulations, as well as possible sustainability reporting requirements.

At the same time, companies that make such investments are less vulnerable to future spikes in utility prices, increasing their energy resilience, and are also more likely to access financing programs.

Cătălin Bojoga also presented the main types of projects that are eligible for funding: investments in equipment that improve the energy performance of the industrial process, industrial equipment or an industrial facility, investments in the rehabilitation of buildings that improve their energy performance, respectively investments in renewable energy and high energy efficiency cogeneration.

DOWNLOAD THE PRESENTATION OF CĂTĂLIN BOJOGA

The conference in Iași was the fourth of a series of 5 scheduled by the Energynomics communication platform, the Romanian Fund for Energy Efficiency – FREE and the Directorate for Energy Efficiency within the Ministry of Energy. The project is financed by Norwegian Grants 2014-2021. The final conference is scheduled on November 16 and 17, in Bucharest.