World Bank approves loan to 3 Chinese energy-efficient projects
The World Bank has granted a combined loan of US$441 million to three Chinese energy-efficient projects, accounting for nearly one-third of the bank’s budgeted lending to China in the 2008 fiscal year.
The move is to support the nation’s efforts to enhance energy efficiency and cut pollution, besides the other seven projects that the bank has funded in China on clean energy and energy saving, sources reported.
Of all the loans, US$200 million will be granted to the Energy Efficiency Financing Project, through which it will help domestic participating commercial banks, including the Export-Import Bank of China and Huaxia Bank Co, to foster their capacity of providing large-scale loans to energy-efficient programs.
In addition, WB will lend US$50 million to fund a gas desulphurization project in Shandong province, which ranks the first among all Chinese provinces in terms of sulfur dioxide emission, and US$191 million for the reconstruction of the centralized heating systems in Liaoning province.
Tags: Energy, world-bank