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EBRD President visits Lithuania
Reaffirms commitment to invest; will sign loan with Siauliu Bankas
The President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Jean Lemierre, begins a two-day visit to Lithuania on Monday to meet with government and business leaders and affirm the EBRD's commitment to invest actively in the country.
Mr Lemierre's visit will promote investment in Lithuania. He will sign a new €2 million credit line to Siauliu Bankas to support local farmers, traders and food processors, who wish to use grain as collateral for short-term loans. The project builds on similar transactions in central and eastern Europe.
To date, the Bank, one of the largest investors in Lithuania, has committed more than €390 million in 28 projects in the country. Since 2000, the Bank has committed around €120 million to projects in sectors which include industry, insurance, telecommunications and municipal finance, and in 2001 expects to further increase its portfolio with projects in sectors including infrastructure, energy and telecommunications.
During talks with President Valdas Adamkus and Prime Minister Algirdas Brazauskas, Mr Lemierre will welcome the country's reform programme over the past two years, which has helped Lithuania to record positive economic growth in 2000 and 2001. He will also discuss the country's plans in the energy sector and the EBRD's activities in the municipal sector.
For its future investments, the Bank is currently focusing on infrastructure, including railways, power and energy, and extending municipal finance to local towns and cities. It is also looking at local currency financing to private companies, increasing the number of equity investments and providing more support to small and medium-sized enterprises, which the Bank considers to be the back-bone of a successful market economy.
The EBRD will also continue to manage a €200 million international Fund, which will support Lithuania in the decommissioning of the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant. The agreement was signed earlier this year and approved by the Lithuanian parliament in July. Lithuania has committed to close Unit 1 before 2005 and establish a closure date for the second unit not later than 2004.
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