Chinese banks provide $10bn for European solar projects

China Merchants Bank (600036.SH, 3968.HK) and China Development Bank will provide up to US$10 billion in funding to three Chinese solar equipment manufacturers for projects in Europe, Bloomberg reported. Goldpoly New Energy Holdings (686.HK), TBEA SunOasis (part of Tebian Electric Apparatus Stock, 600089.SH) and China Technology Development Group (CTDC.NASDAQ) are looking to expand in Europe, particularly in Germany after the government’s recent decision to abandon nuclear energy by 2022. While no specific timetable has been given, the firms said they plan to start with smaller projects before increasing their scale. “Given [Chinese banks] backing of $10 billion credit facilities, we will be able to grow steadily and advance our investment and construction of solar plants in Europe,” said Jianxin Zhang, CEO of TBEA SunOasis. Last year China Development Bank lent about US$35.5 billion to clean energy projects.