BNZ secures €166 million EIB loan for 700MW of European solar capacity

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
BNZ's Alamak Solar project in Spain.
BNZ plans to commission 1.7GW of solar projects across Italy, Portugal and Spain. Image: BNZ.

Spanish independent power producer (IPP) BNZ has secured a €166 million (US$185.4 million) loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to support the deployment of 700MW of new solar capacity in Europe.

The financing is the first phase of a €500 million (US$558.3 million) loan approved by the EIB to support BNZ’s deployment of 1.7GW of new solar capacity in southern Europe by the end of 2026. This first phase will involve the construction of 17 new solar projects in Italy, Portugal and Spain, and the EIB noted that these projects will be built in regions “where per capita income is lower than EU average”.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

“The new phase marked by the closing of our financing demonstrates the solidity of our business and the ambitious nature of our plans and opens a new scenario for us to explore technological and geographical diversity, and to grow in volume and team headcount, with the aim of becoming one of the largest IPPs in the market,” said BNZ managing director Luis Selva.

“We want to continue building a cleaner and more sustainable future, and the support from such significant financial institutions such as the EIB shows a shared long-term vision to achieve a better world.”

The news is a positive development for BNZ, which has ambitious plans for its solar portfolio, but yet to realise many of them. The company currently operates just 74MW of solar capacity in Spain, and with 1.7GW of capacity in its pipeline, the additional financial support from the EU could be essential to the company’s success.

This financial support is tied to a number of EU initiatives to support the greater deployment of renewable enery capacity, including InvestEU, the EU’s programme to mobilise more than €372 billion (US$415.4 billion) of public and private investment until 2027.

The funds are also part of the EIB’s support of the REPowerEU plan, which has sought to reduce European reliance on Russian oil and gas in the aftermath of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and is part of the EIB’s commitment of €30 billion (US$33.5 billion) of additional financing between 2022 and 2027. The news also follows the EU Commission’s €1.2 billion (US$1.3 billion) investment into a Polish renewable energy manufacturing programme, as the EU looks to support both upstream and downstream parts of the clean energy supply chain.

The announcement is good news for the European solar sector, which has seen a number of discouraging developments since much was made of the region’s potential for manufacturing, in particular, at the Intersolar event held over the summer in Germany. These include the departure of Meyer Burger CEO Gunter Erfurt earlier this week, raising questions about the long-term viability of solar manufacturing in Europe.

25 November 2025
Warsaw, Poland
Large Scale Solar Central and Eastern Europe continues to be the place to leverage a network that has been made over more than 10 years, to build critical partnerships to develop solar projects throughout the region.
2 December 2025
Málaga, Spain
Understanding PV module supply to the European market in 2026. PV ModuleTech Europe 2025 is a two-day conference that tackles these challenges directly, with an agenda that addresses all aspects of module supplier selection; product availability, technology offerings, traceability of supply-chain, factory auditing, module testing and reliability, and company bankability.
10 March 2026
Frankfurt, Germany
The conference will gather the key stakeholders from PV manufacturing, equipment/materials, policy-making and strategy, capital equipment investment and all interested downstream channels and third-party entities. The goal is simple: to map out PV manufacturing out to 2030 and beyond.

Read Next

October 8, 2025
Despite policy headwinds on the federal level, there is optimism for the future of the US solar and storage sector.
October 8, 2025
Officials from Norway and Egypt have agreed provisional terms for the financing of the Dandara solar park in Egypt, which is being built and operated by Norwegian IPP Scatec.
October 7, 2025
Econergy will acquire 100% stake in the 155MW Ratesti solar project in Romania, further expanding its European renewable energy portfolio.
October 7, 2025
Solar PV will account for almost 80% of the 4.6TW of new renewable power expected to be added by 2030, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
October 7, 2025
OpenSolar has secured US$13.1 million in equity financing from technology investors, including Titanium Ventures, Google and others.
October 7, 2025
Doral Renewables has secured a PPA with an unnamed 'corporate buyer' for its 430MW Cold Creek solar-plus-storage project in Texas.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
October 21, 2025
New York, USA
Solar Media Events
November 25, 2025
Warsaw, Poland
Solar Media Events
December 2, 2025
Málaga, Spain
Solar Media Events
February 3, 2026
London, UK