European Investment Bank will provide £700m of loans, with other UK-based banks financing the remainder

Up to £1.4bn of onshore wind projects could move into construction in the next three years following the announcement that new financing will be made available.

The scheme - supported by HMTreasury and Department of Energy and Climate Change - will see the European Investment Bank (EIB) providing up to £700m of loans being made available to eligible onshore wind projects with a total project cost of between £20m and £100m. The remainder will be matched by RBS, Lloyds Banking Group and BNP Paribas Fortis.

Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Miliband said: “The UK now has 4GW of wind capacity. And the pace of installation is picking up. It took us 14 years to build the first gigawatt, and just one year to build the last. But we still need a six-fold increase in renewables by 2020 to hit our renewables target. That target is vital if we are to be on course to cutting emissions by 80% by 2050.

“So we need to pull out the stops including making sure the capital is there to build the wind farms in the first place. This partnership of the EIB with RBS, BNP Paribas Fortis and Lloyds Banking group will address that problem.”

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