European Investment Bank hoping to double cumulative commitment to Indian market

Guwahati, Feb 26 (PTI) The European Investment Bank is hoping to nearly double its cumulative commitment to the Indian market to reach Euro 10 billion in the next 6-7 years as it looks for untapped areas to venture, a top official said on Wednesday.

Talking to PTI at the Advantage Assam 2.0 business summit here, European Investment Bank Country Manager Michael Steidl said it has started looking at projects in tea, oil and infrastructure sectors of Assam to expand its portfolio in the coming period.

"Our cumulative commitment to India since we started operations in 1993 is Euro 5.5 billion. This will be continued over the next 2-3 years," he added.

Steidl said the bank will sign projects with Euro 600 million financing options during the current year.

He said that these new finances will be in urban mobility, water treatment plants and green hydrogen from both government and private sectors.

Asked about the future outlook of the company, Steidl said, "We are looking at a cumulative asset worth Euro 10 billion in the next 6-7 years period." He said that 90 per cent of the ongoing projects are related to climate and the future roadmap will also be along similar lines.

Talking about Assam, Steidl said that presently there is no exposure of the bank in the northeast, but it is now actively looking to venture into the region.

"The EU Ambassador asked us to explore the area. We are looking at two areas. The first one is the high-end value chain in Assam having connections to European consumers like tea and oil," he added.

The other area that EIB is exploring is infrastructure projects having connectivity within India and to neighbouring countries, Steidl said.

"The connectivity may be in road, electricity and exports," he added. PTI TR NN

Source: PTI