The BSAP Fund is a fund managed by the Nordic Investment Bank (NIB) and the Nordic Environment Finance Corporation (NEFCO).
The fund provides grants for technical assistance to projects that support the implementation of the HELCOM Baltic Sea Action Plan (BSAP). The aim of the BSAP is to help restore the ecological status of the Baltic Sea.
Recipients eligible for financing through the BSAP Fund include both public and private entities operating in the agricultural and wastewater treatment sectors, shipping and ports, as well as those working to reduce hazardous waste in the Baltic Sea catchment area. A key purpose of the fund is to facilitate and speed up the preparation of bankable projects. The fund provides grant financing for the following:
- Expenditures for project preparation and development, including feasibility studies, development of business ideas, and cash-flow models
- Technical assistance for institutional support, that is, training and support needed for project preparation, development and implementation
- Improving efficiency and quality in project implementation through, for example, supporting the acquisition of equipment for demonstration purposes
A number of projects, ranging in size from EUR 18,000 to EUR 1 million, have been approved for grant financing. The aim of the fund’s activities is also to enhance the opportunities for projects to obtain investment financing from international financial institutions, including NIB and NEFCO.
Speeding up BSAP
The Baltic Sea Action Plan was adopted by the HELCOM member countries (Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia and Sweden) in 2007. The aim of the plan is to restore the good ecological status of the Baltic marine environment by 2021.
To speed up the implementation of the plan the BSAP Fund was set up in 2009. NIB and NEFCO, both having a long-term engagement in the Baltic Sea region and strong environmental mandates, are joint managers of the fund.
Sweden has committed SEK 90 million (EUR 9 million) to the BSAP Fund and Finland EUR 2 million.
NIB is the common international financial institution of the eight Nordic and Baltic countries. NIB provides long-term financing to the energy, environmental, transport, logistics and communications, and innovation sectors for projects that strengthen competitiveness and enhance the environment. NIB has the highest possible credit rating, AAA/Aaa, with the leading rating agencies Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s.
NEFCO is an international financial institution owned by the five Nordic countries. NEFCO finances investments and projects in Russia, Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Belarus, in order to generate positive environmental effects of interest to the Nordic region.
Source: http://www.nib.int/loans/loan_products/trust_funds/bsap_fund/bsap_fund_projects