EIB provides €225 million for less waste and greater energy efficiency in Italy

Brussels – Objective: to promote the circular economy and energy efficiency in Italy. The European Investment Bank (EIB) signs a €225 million financing agreement with Iren Luce e Gas to promote greater sustainability in the country, through two areas of intervention: enhancing waste collection systems and implementing measures to reduce energy consumption in buildings.

With regard to urban waste management, the agreement, signed by EIB Vice-President Gelsomina Vigliotti and Executive President of Iren, Luca Dal Fabbro, provides financial support for new containers, collection vehicles, recycling centres and infrastructure to support the introduction of Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) systems, which link tariffs to the amount of waste actually produced and encourage better separation at source. At the same time, on the housing front, the project includes energy-efficiency measures to reduce consumption in buildings, with a particular focus on social welfare facilities, such as residential care homes for the elderly and mental health centres, managed by non-profit organisations. 

The investments will mainly be made in the three regions of north-western Italy where the Iren Group has historically operated—namely Piedmont, Emilia Romagna, and Liguria—although, according to the signatories of the agreement, the €225 million will also be channelled into initiatives in Tuscany and “other regions” of the country. 

According to EIB estimates, environmental measures should reduce waste production by around 50,000 tonnes per year and increase separate collection for recycling or biomethane production by around 220,000 tonnes annually. Energy efficiency measures, on the other hand, are expected to save around 6,800 MWh of primary energy each year and generate around 1,400 MWh of electricity from renewable sources, equivalent to the annual needs of around 550 Italian households and in line with the European Commission’s requests.

 “Today’s agreement represents a concrete step towards a more sustainable development model, based on emissions reduction, the circular economy and energy efficiency,” emphasises a satisfied Vigliotti. Dal Fabbro, on the other hand, highlights how the €225 million financing agreement “enables us to support the Iren Group’s sustainable investments underpinning the transition plan to 2040, promoting waste collection and energy efficiency projects that will have a significant impact on our territories.”