French biomass CHP to benefit from $344m loan

A group of lending institutions is to provide more than $344m in finance for energy schemes, which favour the use of biomass and biomass combined heat and power technology in France.

The European Investment Bank (EIB), BPCE Group and Crédit Agricole’s Caisses régionales, as well as Crédit Agricole Leasing & Factoring, will be lending the funds to develop biomass-fed energy schemes and enhanced waste recycling and recovery in France, the EIB announced in a press release.

This financing agreement will make it possible to enhance the value of forest or agriculture-based biomass by using it, together with household and similar waste, to generate electricity, biogas and heat in France.

Thus new biomass-fired schemes will be financed throughout France, including heat-only and combined heat and power cogeneration plants, as well as facilities for treating household and similar waste to generate biogas and electricity. The agreement will also make it possible to support work on renovating and extending urban district heating systems, with the twofold objective of improving energy performance and efficiency

Source: COSPP