The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will invest an additional 50 million euros in its joint venture with Dimand, a leading Greek real-estate developer and construction services provider, to support urban regeneration and green buildings in Greece.
The Joint Venture, 35 per cent of which is owned by the EBRD and 65 per cent by Arcela Investments, a subsidiary of Dimand will fund a new pipeline of green offices, mixed-use projects and city hotels.
“The joint venture integrates sustainability and resource efficiency as a systematic and core element of its business strategy while addressing a number of strategic priorities set by the EBRD, ultimately supporting the decarbonisation of the Greek building sector”, noted Vlaho Kojakovic, EBRD Head of Property and Tourism.
Alongside the increase in investment, the Bank will promote a higher level of sustainability reporting and risk management by introducing GRESB ‒ the global environmental, social and governance (ESG) benchmark for real estate assets through Dimand.
Notwithstanding a rise in local demand for sustainable buildings in Greece, there is still a limited supply of quality new products and chronic underinvestment in the refurbishment of existing buildings.
The built environment accounts for close to 40 per cent of all global energy-related greenhouse gas emissions and half of the global resource extraction. Consequently, the need for sustainable building developments and the deep retrofit of existing buildings has never been more urgent.
To date, the EBRD has invested approximately 5.4 billion euros in more than 85 projects in the corporate, financial, energy and infrastructure sectors of the Greek economy.
