While travelling in French Guiana and the West Indies in mid-October, Eric Lombard, Chief Executive Officer of Caisse des Dépôts, reasserted the Group's support for these territories. A support achieved by the signing of new agreements in favour of development and the fight against social inequalities and territorial divide.
When I travel out in the community, I pay great attention to dialogue with local representatives and business leaders, to listen to them on the ground and gain a clearer understanding of their projects so as to offer them more effective support.
Eric Lombard
Assisting in the reconstruction and development of Saint-Martin
Fostering the development of overseas territories
Via its Banque des Territoires, Caisse des Dépôts is using its full range of expertise and operational scope for the benefit of local areas and their projects: consultancy and engineering, loans for housing and the local public sector, equity investments, social housing operator, bank services, etc.
On 14 October, François Ringuet, Mayor of the city of Kourou, and Eric Lombard thus signed two loan agreements: the first, Mobi Prêt, in French Guiana, to facilitate mobility among Kourou residents, and the first Édu Prêt loan in French Guiana aimed at improving the performance of municipal educational buildings.
Eric Lombard then signed agreements on 17 October with Eric Jalton, President of the Cap Excellence Urban Area Community*, and on 18 October with Ary Chalus, President of Guadeloupe Regional Council, in a bid to forge sustainable partnerships in the context of these local authorities' public policies.
The main purpose of the agreement signed with Cap Excellence is to support the Guadeloupean authority's investments to enhance the appeal and quality of life of residents in the urban area community.
The agreement signed with the Guadeloupe Region bears on policy areas meeting the joint goals of local development, energy transition and social cohesion, with a particular focus on the social and solidarity economy.
Supporting the energy transition and water management in French Guiana
On 14 October, Banque des Territoires and Voltalia officially inaugurated the Savane des Pères power plant in French Guiana, which combines a solar power plant and battery storage system. This plant exemplifies Banque des Territoires' and Voltalia's joint commitment to combating climate change by encouraging local economic growth. Located on an old municipal waste disposal site in the town of Sinnamary, the plant has enabled a brownfield site to be repurposed and jobs to be created. It is helping to achieve energy self-sufficiency in French Guiana.
An Aqua Prêt letter of intent was signed on 15 October with the coastal centre urban area community for a Banque des Territoires loan to finance work on the drinking water supply infrastructure and wastewater treatment infrastructure in Cayenne. The total cost of the project is €5mn.
* Central Guadeloupe urban area community which brings together Pointe-à-Pitre, Les Abymes and Baie-Mahault