Success rate of EIB projects submitted by small/peripheral Member States of the EU

Question for written answer
to the Commission
Rule 130
Alfred Sant (S&D)

E-003770-16
Subject: Success rate of EIB projects submitted by small/peripheral Member States of the EU

The 2014 Statistical Report of the European Investment Bank (EIB) shows that 59.4% of all EIB-signed projects were allocated to the five biggest EU economies, while the stake of the other 23 Member States stood at only 30.3%. In 2015 EUR 49.493 million out of the EUR 69.691 million spent on financing operations within the EU went to the five biggest economies, 57.2% of the total lending capacity. The small/peripheral Member States of the EU have the fewest projects implemented, even when their size and capacity compared to the larger Member States is taken into account. The EIB’s activities, on the other hand, depend on the needs of the country and on the presentation of economically viable, bankable projects.
Could the Commission provide studies/documents showing the success rate of the financing and implementation projects in Member States in relation to the number of projects submitted to the EIB (breakdown by Member States)?

The European Investment Advisory Hub (EIAH) is one of the tools of the Investment Plan, aiming to improve conditions for investment by addressing financial and non-financial obstacles. Has the number of financed projects in the EU increased since the implementation of the EIAH?

Answer given by Vice-President Katainen on behalf of the Commission
The Commission believes that European Investment Bank (EIB)’s commitment to the economies of the Member states should be evaluated by seeing the total lending amounts in relation to the size of the economies (e.g. as percentage of GDP or amounts per capita). EIB lending does not follow any geographical quota.
The EIB screens projects to ensure that they meet EU objectives and offer economic benefits, based on three main filtering criteria: eligibility, project quality, and EIB operational constraints. The EIB is required to consult the Commission on the compatibility of their project proposals with EU policies (Article 19 of the EIB Statute).
The European Investment Advisory Hub (EIAH) went live on 1 September 2015 and requests for technical assistance support can be submitted online(1). From the requests received by EIAH until now, only around 40% of them were for technical assistance alongside a simultaneous request for funding support. The Hub so far has engaged in strategic guidance and technical support in 20% of the total technical assistance requests received and therefore directly contributes to the development of economically and technically viable investment projects in the EU.

E-003770-16
Suġġett: Ir-rata ta’ suċċess tal-proġetti BEI ppreżentati mill-Istati Membri żgħar/periferiċi tal-UE

Ir-Rapport Statistiku tal-2014 tal-Bank Ewropew tal-Investiment (BEI) juri li 59.4 % tal-proġetti kollha ffirmati mill-BEI ġew allokati lill-ħames l-akbar ekonomiji tal-UE, filwaqt li s-sehem tat-23 Stat Membru l-ieħor kien biss ta’ 30.3 %; Fl-2015, EUR 49.493 miljun minn EUR 69.691 miljun li ntefqu fuq operazzjonijiet ta’ finanzjament fl-UE marru għall-ħames l-akbar ekonomiji, 57.2 % tal-kapaċità totali ta’ self. L-Istati Membri żgħar/periferali tal-UE għandhom l-inqas proġetti implimentati, anke meta jittieħed kont tad-daqs u l-kapaċità tagħhom meta kkumparati mal-Istati Membri l-kbar. L-attivitajiet tal-BEI, min-naħa l-oħra, jiddependu fuq il-ħtiġijiet tal-pajjiż u fuq il-preżentazzjoni ta’ proġetti ekonomikament vijabbli u bankabbli.
Tista’ l-Kummissjoni tipprovdi studji/dokumenti li juru r-rata ta’ suċċess tal-finanzjament u l-implimentazzjoni tal-proġetti fl-Istati Membri fir-rigward tan-numru ta’ proġetti sottomessi lill-BEI (tqassim skont l-Istati Membri)?
Iċ-Ċentru Ewropew ta’ Konsulenza għall-Investimenti (EIAH) huwa wieħed mill-għodod tal-Pjan ta’ Investiment, bl-għan li jtejjeb il-kundizzjonijiet għall-investiment billi jindirizza l-ostakli finanzjarji u mhux finanzjarji. Mill-implimentazzjoni tal-EIAH ‘l hawn, in-numru ta’ proġetti ffinanzjati mill-UE żdied?

Tweġiba mogħtija mill-Viċi-President Katainen f’isem il-Kummissjoni
Il-Kummissjoni temmen li l-impenn tal-Bank Ewropew tal-Investiment (BEI) lejn l-ekonomiji tal-Istati Membri jinħtieġ li jiġi evalwat billi jingħata kas tal-ammonti totali ta’ self b’rabta mad-daqs l-ekonomiji (pereż. bħala perċentwal tal-PDG jew l-ammonti per capita). Is-self tal-BEI ma jsegwi l-ebda kwota ġeografika.
Il-BEI jiskrinja proġetti biex jiżgura li dawn jilħqu l-objettivi tal-UE u joffru benefiċċji ekonomiċi, ibbażat fuq dawn it-tliet kriterji tal-iffiltrar: eliġibbiltà, il-kwalità tal-proġetti, u r-restrizzjonijiet operazzjonali tal-BEI. Il-BEI huwa fid-dmir li jikkonsulta mal-Kummissjoni dwar il-kompatibbiltà tal-proposti tagħhom ta’ proġetti mal-politiki tal-UE (l-Artikolu 19 tal-Istatut tal-BEI).

Iċ-Ċentru Ewropew ta’ Konsulenza għall-Investimenti (European Investment Advisory Hub, EIAH) beda jiffunzjoni fl-1 ta’ Settembru 2015 u t-talbiet għal assistenza u appoġġ tekniku jistgħu jkunu ppreżentati onlajn(1). Minn talbiet riċevuti mill-EIAH sa issa, madwar 40 % biss minnhom kienu għall-assistenza teknika flimkien ma’ talba simultanja għal appoġġ finanzjarju. Iċ-Ċentru sa issa impenja ruħu fil-gwida strateġika u fl-appoġġ tekniku f’20 % tat-total tat-talbiet għall-assistenza teknika li rċieva u għalhekk jikkontribwixxi direttament lejn l-iżvilupp ta’ proġetti ta’ investiment ekonomikament u teknikament vijabbli fl-UE.