One of the important supports obtained by the first vice president and Minister of Economy, Nadia Calvinoin his career to preside over the European Investment Bank (EIB) was that of Germany. The endorsement took a while but finally the chancellor Olaf Scholz publicly expressed his support for Pedro Sanchez during the meeting of European socialists in Malaga, three weeks ago. This is a good card in the game that is not enough. European sources assured a few days ago that Calviño had “60% chance” to obtain the position, whose main rival is the executive vice president of the European Commission and head of Competition, Margrethe Vestager, who temporarily left office in September to focus on the election.
The support of Berlin, which controls almost 19% of the capital of the entity and therefore of weight in the vote, is vital. But just as important is who the other two major EU countries will vote for: France and Italy who control the same percentage of the vote, slightly above 11% which Spain, the fourth shareholder, has in its hands, ahead of the Netherlands, Belgium and Poland. The government of Emmanuel Macron He has not spoken out until now although in Brussels it is assumed that he will end up supporting Spain. The one of Giorgia Melonion the other hand, has dropped, as reported at the beginning of the week by the Bloomberg agency, that if it withdraws its candidate, the former economy minister Daniele Francoyour vote will go to the Danish liberal.
Both have been the big favorites to succeed the German from the beginning. Werner Hoyer at the head of the EIB when his mandate expires at the end of the year. But the election has been delayed since neither the Italian nor the Polish Teresa Czerwinska not even the swedish Thomas Ostro They have withdrawn from the race, preventing governments from reaching the necessary qualified majority. To climb to the top of the box, the chosen one will have to bring together the support of 18 member states representing 68% of the capital of the entity, based in Luxembourg.
Although according to some diplomatic sources at the moment “neither Calviño nor Vestager have enough votes” to be elected, the Belgian finance minister, Vincent van Peteghemwho directs the election process as president of the EIB council of governors, has decided to opt for Calviño and propose his name to the rest of the governors as a candidate. “to force a decision”according to the same sources, which could be adopted during the Ecofin meeting this December 8 in Brussels.
“There are two conditions for the appointment of the president: 18 votes in favor and 68% of the capital. In recent months, Minister van Peteghem has consulted with the council of governors and those consultations have shown that Only Calviño’s candidacy could meet those two conditions”, European sources explain the reason for the decision which, if confirmed, could lead Calviño to settle in a new office in Luxembourg from January 1, 2024.
Without singing victory
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The Spanish Government is optimistic, but without anticipating events, something essential in the negotiations and to navigate the labyrinth of European politics. “In the Government we have always indicated that the candidacy of the first vice president is strong and we believe that she is the ideal person to occupy such a relevant position in a European institution of such weight as the EIB. In any case, we remain cautious“, they stated this Thursday in response to a decision that initially had to be made during the council of informal economy ministers in Santiago de Compostela.
The EIB, based in Luxembourg, is like the financial arm of the European Union (EU), since its main mission is to provide financing for projects that contribute to achieving community objectives, both inside and outside it. It is currently the main European tool to finance aid for Ukraine. It is also essential in the management of Next Generation loans. Since its founding in 1958, the Bank has had seven presidents, all men and none Spanish, so Calviño could become the first female president of the EIB. It is the only bank whose shareholders are the EU Member States, whose participation is distributed according to their economic weight in the EU (expressed in GDP) upon entry into the Union (Spain contributes 9.66%). .