Transport Call for proposalS
Blending Call 2017
Letter of Support/financial readiness
For all entities (other than PPP/Concession)
Title of the proposed Action
TENtec number
Letter of support from a public or private financial institution
evidencing the financial readiness of the project
Guidance to the institution(s) providing the letter:
The applicant shall submit a letter of support from one or several public or private financing institutions[1] evidencing the financial readiness of the project.
The “Letter of Support” shall be submitted in accordance with the "Template for letter of support" and include the following elements in specific well-identified sections, drawing on the information provided by the Applicant in Application Form E.1:
· Name(s) and function(s) of the issuer of the letter
· Name(s) institution represented
· Date
· Addressee (i.e. the applicant/project promoter)
· Identify the borrowing entity raising finance (if it is not the same as the applicant)
· Brief project description
· Type and level of finance that the Institution(s) could provide, and conditions
· Stage of approvals and expected timetable and foreseen date of financial close, and conditions
· Financial capacity and business plan of the grant applicant, grant beneficiary or borrowing entity as appropriate, and conditions
Further evidence:
In addition to the above required elements and subject to qualifications that the Institution may wish to add, the Letter of support may also provide additional elements of information[2], such as:
a. Description of the relationship existing between the Institution(s) and applicants/borrower/sponsors
b. Track record of the borrower on the type of transaction contemplated with a relevant geographic and sectorial focus.
c. Major milestones envisaged to closing and status on critical information still required to be finalized
d. Composition of the team established within the Institution(s) (and contact info) dedicated to the project.
e. Nature and key parameters of financing proposed, underlying principles and major assumptions, key risks identified by the Institution(s) and related mitigants, including uncertainty on cash flows.
The attention of the Institution(s) is drawn to the following.
Grant disbursement for selected Actions will be conditional on:
a. The approval for financing by the EFSI Investment Committee and European Investment Bank (EIB) Board of Directors and, subsequently, full financial close for the entire financing requirement within 12 months from the date of the signature of the grant agreement[3].
Or, only for actions aiming at removing bottlenecks, actions with cross-border impact, or actions in Member States eligible under the Cohesion Fund[4]:
b. The signature of a finance agreement by a National Promotional Bank[5], the European Investment Bank (EIB) or at least one private sector investor for at least the value of the CEF grant awarded and a full financial close for the entire financing within 12 months from the date of the signature of the grant agreement.
The targeted date of the signature of the grant agreement is nine months from the cut-off date(s) of the call (14 July and 30 November respectively). The applicants' attention is however drawn to the fact that due to its complexity and the time needed to comply with specific procedures of the call, the time to grant may exceed nine months, at INEA's initiative in accordance with Article 128 (2) of the Financial Regulation (Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 966/2012 as amended). Actions delivered through PPPs or concessions are examples where such derogation may apply.
Template for Letter of Support
We, undersigned, based on the information in Application Form E1, provide an assessment of the financial readiness of the project as follows:
· Name(s) and function(s) of the issuer of the letter
· Name(s) institution represented
· Date
· Addressee (i.e. the applicant/project promoter)
· Identify the borrowing entity raising finance (if it is not the same as the applicant)
· Brief project description
· Type and level of finance that the Institution(s) could provide, and conditions
· Stage of approvals and expected timetable and foreseen date of financial close, and conditions
· Financial capacity and business plan of the grant applicant, grant beneficiary and borrowing entity as appropriate and conditions
· [additional information]
Date, and for each signatory: name(s) and function(s), institution represented
[1] Public or private financing institution means: bank, a leasing company, a guarantee fund, a mutual guarantee institution, a promotional bank or any other financial institution, including investment funds and institutional investors, duly authorised to carry out lending, investing or leasing activities according to the applicable legislation, established and operating in one or several of the EU Member States
[2] The list is indicative: the Institution(s) should feel free to refer to other information considered relevant for its assessment of the financial readiness of the project.
[3] For clarity EIB involvement in financial close is not a requirement for grant disbursement.
[4] Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia
[5] Ref. Regulation (EU) 2015/1017 on the European Fund for Strategic Investments, the European Investment Advisory Hub and the European Investment Project Portal