2012-01-31 00:00:00
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€5.4 million to implement energy saving measures in Bingo chainThe EBRD is further promoting energy efficiency in Bosnia and Herzegovina with a €5.4 million loan to finance implementation of advanced energy saving measures in one of the leading retail chains in the country – Bingo. Bingo is the second largest retailer in Bosnia and Herzegovina, operating 43 supermarkets and 24 hypermarkets, with a total trading area of more than 150,000 square metres. The EBRD loan, part of the Bank’s Western Balkans Sustainable Energy Direct Financing Facility (WeBSEDFF), is extended to Bingo’s subsidiary, Hekom, which manages the company’s energy efficiency programmes. The proceeds of the loan will be used to install such energy efficiency measures as water-to-water heat pumps, LED lighting, chillers, high performing refrigeration with heat recovery, as well as insulation panels in Bingo’s outlets. It is estimated that this project will reduce CO2 emissions by approximately 4,700 tonnes, which is equivalent to a saving of 51 kg of CO2 per square metre of retail space per year. The project will transform Bingo’s retail network into a showcase of advanced sustainable energy solutions in the retail industry and will enable the company to minimise operating costs and strengthen its competitiveness. “We are pleased to continue our cooperation with Bingo and help the company implement latest energy efficiency technologies throughout its retail chain. This project will serve as an excellent example of the benefits brought by such technologies and we expect other companies to follow suit,” said Libor Krkoska, Head of the EBRD office in Bosnia and Herzegovina. “Our successful cooperation with the EBRD shows that Bingo d.o.o. can at any moment meet all requirements and fulfil all conditions of such an important international financial institution. This energy efficiency project is of great importance for us. Through the implementation of this project we will stand side by side with international companies that are using the newest energy efficiency technologies. We hope that other companies in the country will follow our lead. This project also shows our awareness of environmental protection and air emissions. We are glad that we can improve the business environment in Bosnia and Herzegovina in this way as well,” said Mr Senad Dzambic, who owns Bingo. In 2010 the EBRD provided a €6.5 million loan to Bingo to support the retailer’s expansion in Bosnia and Herzegovina and help it achieve nationwide coverage. Part of an EBRD programme to address the sustainable energy financing needs in the Western Balkans, WeBSEDFF is dedicated to financing medium-sized renewable energy projects and energy efficiency projects. To date, WeBSEDFF has financed eight projects in the region for a total loan volume of €29.4 million. These projects alone are estimated to save 76,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions a year. Since the beginning of its operations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the EBRD has committed over €1.3 billion in various sectors of the country’s economy, of which over €500 million was in the private sector. In agribusiness alone, the EBRD has directly committed more than €7 billion in over 440 projects across central and eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States since 1991. |