The Deputy Minister of Economy and Finance, Nikos Papathanasis, signed the financing agreement for the establishment of a Fair Development Transition Portfolio Fund by the Hellenic Development Bank.

The Fund, with a total loan budget of €187 million, will be financed with resources from the Fair Development Transition Programme of the NSRF 2021-2027, with the possibility of financing from other European, national, and other sources.

The objective of the Fair Development Transition Portfolio Fund is to create, in a first phase, two financial instruments—as "special funds"—to s support and develop enterprises of all sizes in the Fair Development Transition regions, to facilitate their access to finance, to encourage investment and entrepreneurship, and to develop these regions in general in the context of the change of the production model for a smooth and fair transition to the "post-lignite" era.

The two financial instruments that will be created through the AIM Portfolio Fund are:

• The EQUITABLE DEVELOPMENT TRANSITION LOAN FUND, which will provide loans for capital expenditure and working capital with a 3-year interest rate subsidy of 3% for the implementation of investments in the IDA regions.
• The DEVELOPMENT RIGITAL TRANSITION INVESTMENT LOAN GUARANTEE FUND, which will provide loans for investment expenditure with a 2-year interest rate subsidy of 3% for the implementation of investments in the IDA regions.

The benefits of the financial instruments of the IDA Portfolio Fund will be able to be combined with other grant schemes, implemented in separate operations of the Fair Development Transition Programme, always respecting the State Aid rules applicable on a case-by-case basis.

The Deputy Minister of National Economy and Finance, Nikos Papathanasis, stressed: "We continue to implement our government program, aiming at double convergence, both with the rest of Europe and especially among the country's regions. The ultimate aim of this specific intervention, which is being launched in parallel with the implementation of the wider €1.6 billion IAM Programme, is to support investment projects and the development of the economy of the regions affected by the energy transition, to maintain existing jobs and create new and better paid jobs, especially for young people who want to stay in their home area."