The European Investment Bank (EIB) has agreed to loan €36m towards the construction of a 50MW wind farm in Bosnia Herzegovina.

The Vlasic facility will contain 18 wind turbines, capable of generating 115GWh of energy a year. This is enough to power 20,000 households and avoid the emission of 140,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide.

The €36m is in addition to €21m allocated in December through the Western Balkans Investment Fund, €17m from the government of Bosnia and €17m from Germany’s KfW development bank.

Johann Sattler, the EU ambassador to Bosnia, said: “Together with our partners, we want to help Bosnia and Herzegovina to take advantage of its favourable climate and geography and start delivering on its path towards a low-carbon economy, reducing coal dependence and fostering sustainable development.”

Kyriacos Kakouris, a vice president of the EIB said: “As the EU climate bank, this strategic investment demonstrates the EIB’s determination to scale up its financial and technical support for addressing the challenges related to the green transition in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the western Balkans.”