14 new Primary Care Centres are to be built across Ireland following agreement of a new EUR 70 million (US$ 80.08 million) 25-year loan from the European Investment Bank. This represents the EIB’s first support for healthcare investment in Ireland and the first dedicated backing for Primary Health Care anywhere in Europe. The new PPP-based scheme will support the shift from hospital-based healthcare to community-based care closer to patients.

The European Investment Bank’s new long-term loan is also the first in Ireland to be backed by a guarantee under the European Fund for Strategic Investments initiative (EFSI), the heart of the Investment Plan for Europe intended to generate EUR 315 billion (US$ 360.38 billion) of new investment across Europe.

The new Primary Care Centres are to be built in the west of Ireland in Sligo, Roscommon, Mayo, Galway and  Limerick City; in Waterford City, Tipperary and Wexford Town in the south-east; as well as Kildare and Dublin North City in the east.

They will provide basic health services including GP surgeries, occupational therapy, social work and dietary advice. In some locations additional services will also be provided, including mental health, dentistry and addiction services and a local ambulance base. A total of 150 primary care centres are already operational, underway or in various stages of development across the country.

Financing from the European Investment Bank represents 49.5% of the total investment cost of the new facilities. The project will be co-funded by commercial lenders Talanx Asset Management and Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi.

This is the second healthcare project to be backed by the new European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), the heart of the Investment Plan. EFSI was established a year ago by the European Investment Bank and the European Commission to enable increased lending crucial projects by the European Investment Bank in strategic sectors such as renewable energy, digital infrastructure, social infrastructure, transport and R&D; as well as financing for SMEs.