EIB will provide loans totalling €500m (£426m), of which a first tranche of €300m was signed last week with French national grid operator RTE. The second €200m tranche of the loan will be signed in 2014.
The projects will help to ensure the quality and security of supply and enable new generation sources to be connected to the grid, particularly renewables. The work involves the creation of more than 580km of 400kV, 225kV and 90kV lines and the upgrading of 275km of 400kV lines.
RTE’s investment programme is expected to run to nearly €8bn over the period 2012-2016. To implement the selected seven major transmission projects in a number of French regions, the EIB will cover 43% of the €1.2bn investment.
“This loan demonstrates our commitment to supporting energy in France,” said EIB vice-president Philippe de Fontaine Vive. “Our goal is to develop secure, competitive and sustainable energy. This will involve optimising the quality and security of energy supply while incorporating new power generation facilities, especially from renewable sources. This project will also be a source of employment in the regions concerned.”
Dominique Maillard, chairman of RTE’s executive board, said: “The power grid must be extended and upgraded as we move towards energy transition. We need the high-quality financing that the EIB, which knows us well, has been providing to us consistently for a number of years.”
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