After hearing the Ministry of Economics report “On the involvement of the joint-stock company ‘Development Finance Institution Altum’ in the Three Seas Initiative Investment Fund”, the Cabinet of Ministers at a meeting on 7 May endorsed the involvement of ALTUM in the Three Seas Initiative Investment Fund, which is a new financial instrument to support transport, energy and digitalization infrastructure projects in Central and Eastern Europe.
ALTUM investment in the Three Seas Initiative Investment Fund is projected at EUR 20 million. The investment by ALTUM is yet to be harmonized with the European Commission regarding compliance with the European Union’s rules on business support supervision.
Minister of Economics Jānis Vitenbergs: “The purpose of the Investment Fund is to foster the development of strategic infrastructure in the Three Seas region, thereby increasing interconnectivity. Taking into account the impact of Covid-19 on the Latvian economy, this will be another opportunity to invest in the Latvian economy, which will prompt the development of strategically important infrastructure projects that are essential for ensuring economic growth of our region. We are planning that 40% of the Fund’s investments will go to transport infrastructure, 40% to energy and 20% to digitalization.”
The Three Seas Initiative Investment Fund is a joint initiative of 12 Baltic, Black and Adriatic Sea countries aimed at promoting financing and development of infrastructure projects. The financial resources of the Three Seas Initiative Investment Fund will come from the Three Seas countries’ institutions and other investors from all over the world. The Three Seas initiative Investment Forum aims to raise up to EUR 5 billion. Poland and Romania have already committed EUR 500 million. Estonia also confirmed participation in the Fund on 16 April 2020 and is preparing to organize the next Three Seas Initiative Summit this coming October in Tallinn.
The Three Seas Initiative Investment Fund complements and strengthens the capital deployment of individual Three Seas countries and European Union financial instruments. It is a commercial and market driven initiative to finance only profitable projects, the Fund does not provide non-repayable funds or grants. The Fund makes its investment decisions independently of the investors in the Fund. For the implementation of projects, the Fund will pay special attention to the attraction of private capital according to the public-private partnership principles.
The Three Seas Initiative Investment Fund is an economic dimension of the political platform – the Three Seas Initiative. The Three Seas Initiative includes the 12 EU Member States located between the Adriatic, the Baltic and the Black Seas: Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. Its main partners are Germany, the European Union and the United States. The initiative enhances cooperation with the aim of developing energy, transport and digital infrastructure. The objectives of the initiative include economic development, energy supply security, and united Europe.
As reported, on 26 and 27 February Riga hosted the Three Seas Initiative Investment Fund’s introductory conference, which brought together representatives from the Fund’s member states, decision-makers, Latvian entrepreneurs and other opinion leaders.
For additional information about the initiative, see: http://three-seas.eu/