The European Investment Bank (EIB) is providing ILUNION^[1] with EUR 35 million in financing with the objective of creating jobs^[2] for people with disabilities^[3] and investing in improving energy^[4] efficiency. This is the first loan made by the EIB^[5] to a social economy^[6] enterprise in Spain^[7] and it has received the backing of the Investment Plan for Europe, known as the ‘Juncker Plan’.

The agreement was signed in Brussels today by Vice-President of the EIB^[8], Emma Navarro, and the President of ILUNION^[9], Alberto Durán, during a ceremony attended by Commission Vice-President Jyrki Katainen, and the President of the ONCE^[10] Group, Miguel Carballeda.

ILUNION is made up of enterprises from the ONCE^[11] social group, Spain’s largest employer of people with disabilities. The EIB^[12] funding^[13] under the Juncker Plan^[14] will provide the financing necessary to enable the group to implement its investment^[15] plan up to 2021. These investments concern the renovation of the group’s chain of industrial laundrettes to incorporate more energy-efficient technologies^[16], the construction of a new hotel in Spain^[17] and the renovation of existing hotels, and the development of a range of devices to improve the lives of people with any type of disability. All of these measures share a single objective: to promote the employment of people with disabilities. The project will, in fact, make it possible to create 200 new permanent jobs^[18] plus a further 725 during the implementation phase.

During the signing ceremony held today in the EIB^[19] offices in Brussels, Vice-President of the European Commission, Jyrki Katainen said: “The project shows perfectly what the European Fund for Strategic Investments was created to support: it is highly innovative, promoting social inclusion^[20], energy^[21] efficiency, and job creation. ILUNION’s success shows us once more that doing good and running a successful business are perfectly compatible. The Commission has put forward a pillar of social rights and is committed to increasing social investment^[22], and this project is the embodiment of this commitment. And we aim to do even more to support the social economy^[23] in the future through the InvestEU Programme.”