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EIB Group and UniCredit Bank Austria officials visit Austrian pipe manufacturer KE KELIT to see tech investments promoted by both organisations.
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Company showcases innovation, digitalisation and sustainability at Linz production site.
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Investments financed under EIF guarantee agreement with UniCredit Bank Austria specifically strengthen Austrian SMEs, promote innovation and competitiveness, and secure long-term regional value creation and jobs.
Representatives of the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group and UniCredit Bank Austria visited Austrian pipe and climate-control systems manufacturer KE KELIT to view technological advances supported by both organisations. KE KELIT is among hundreds of Austrian companies that have received loans from UniCredit Bank Austria since 2012 under several successive guarantee agreements totalling €880 million with the European Investment Fund (EIF), which is part of the EIB Group.
Family-owned KE KELIT specialises in sustainable heating, cooling and technical building services, employing around 500 people and exporting worldwide.
The EIB Group and UniCredit Bank Austria visit was to the company’s manufacturing site in Linz and focused on progress in an investment programme promoting innovation, digitalisation and sustainable production.
“KE KELIT demonstrates how European financing can help family-owned businesses invest in their future, drive innovation and secure jobs across the regions.” KE KELIT has increased production capacity, digitalised core operational processes and developed energy-efficient infrastructure with Unicredit Bank Austria financing provided under the EIF guarantee accord. The EIF focuses on support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
“Together with our partners, we enable companies like KE KELIT to modernise their production and drive sustainable growth,” said EIF Senior Regional Representative Marcel Müller-Marbach.
The company’s investment programme includes the expansion of in-house manufacturing, the construction of an energy-efficient production facility and the implementation of advanced digital systems for logistics and production management. Barcode-based solutions and paperless workflows are projected to enable fully digital and significantly more efficient operations.
The programme reinforces KE KELIT’s international competitiveness while supporting technological development and employment through the involvement of numerous Austrian suppliers and partner companies.
“We would like to sincerely thank the European Investment Bank Group and UniCredit Bank Austria for visiting KE KELIT and for the open and appreciative dialogue,” said KE KELIT CFO Kristine Egger.
“The exchange gave us the opportunity to present our innovative strength, technological expertise and future prospects. For us, the sustainable development of our products and a clear commitment to Austria as a production location are key priorities. We are pleased to be able to drive this forward together with our financing partners.”
The cooperation between the EIF and UniCredit Bank Austria is designed to help SMEs including family-owned businesses strengthen their competitiveness while embracing green and digital technologies.
“We are proud to support KE KELIT together with the EIF as a financing partner,” said UniCredit Bank Austria Head of Medium Corporates Sabine Hönigsberger. “Especially in economically challenging times, Austrian SMEs need strong and reliable partners — and as part of our ongoing SME growth initiative, we are doing everything we can to support them in the best possible way. The EIF guarantee is a decisive factor that enables us to offer our corporate clients even more attractive financing solutions.”
Since 2012 the EIF and UniCredit Bank Austria have built a partnership on a series of guarantee agreements making new financing opportunities available to Austrian SMEs for investments in innovation, digitalisation and sustainability.
The EIF-UniCredit Bank Austria agreement is part of the European Union’s drive to mobilise public and private resources for the green and digital transitions, offering Austrian businesses access to EU-backed risk sharing and improved lending terms.
Background information
EIB Group
The European Investment Bank (ElB) Group is the financing arm of the European Union, owned by the 27 Member States, and one of the largest multilateral development banks in the world. In 2025, the EIB Group signed €100 billion of new financing and advisory services for over 870 high-impact projects in eight core priorities that support EU policy objectives: climate action and the environment, digitalisation and technological innovation, security and defence, territorial cohesion, agriculture and the bioeconomy, social infrastructure, strong global partnerships and the savings and investment union. Beyond long-term loans for large infrastructures, the EIB Group crowds-in private investment for high-risk innovative projects and businesses, with a growing role in Europe’s markets for venture debt, venture capital, guarantees and securitisations.
The European Investment Fund (EIF) is the subsidiary of the EIB Group specialised in providing guarantees and equity to improve access to finance for small and medium size businesses and startups across Europe. Acting as an anchor investor, through its extensive network of partnering banks and investment funds, the EIF mobilizes private investment and nurtures the ecosystem of venture capital funds to support innovative European entrepreneurs.
In 2023, the EIF together with six Member States (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands) launched the European Tech Champions Initiative, a fund of funds to scale-up innovative startups. This initiative has already enabled the creation of 12 European venture capital mega-funds and scaled up 38 companies, including 11 unicorns (with more than €1 billion in capital).
Photos of the EIB Group's spokespeople and headquarters, logo files and video B-roll for media use are available here.
About UniCredit
UniCredit Bank Austria is part of UniCredit, a pan-European commercial bank with a unique service offering in Italy, Germany, Austria, and Central and Eastern Europe.
Our vision is to be the bank for the future of Europe. Our goal is to empower communities so they can thrive by providing first-class services to all stakeholders and enabling our customers and employees across Europe to reach their full potential.
Our core markets are in Italy, Germany, Austria, and Central and Eastern Europe and are served by three high-performing product factories within the Group: Corporate Solutions for our corporate clients, Individual Solutions for our retail clients, and Group Payments Solutions for payments. This allows us to be close to our customers and leverage the scale of the entire Group to develop and offer the best products for all our markets.
We provide comprehensive service to approximately 15 million customers worldwide. Our market-leading solutions, complemented by the extensive expertise of our partners and supported by powerful digitalization and data processing, create genuine added value for our customers, who are at the heart of everything we do.
Digitalization and our commitment to ESG principles (Environment, Social, Governance) are essential prerequisites for our services. They help us deliver outstanding performance for our stakeholders and create a sustainable future for our customers, our communities, and our employees.
To learn more about UniCredit's latest financial results, sustainability initiatives, and corporate strategies, visit the UniCredit Group Official Website.
KE KELIT
KE KELIT is an Austrian family-owned company headquartered in Linz and is recognised as one of the international innovation leaders in sustainable piping systems and building technology. Since its foundation in 1945, the company has been developing, manufacturing and distributing innovative systems for drinking water, heating, cooling, industrial applications and district heating. Today, KE KELIT operates globally, exports to international markets across several continents and has production sites in Austria and Malaysia.
With more than 150 patents and utility models, KE KELIT stands for technological innovation, highest quality standards and sustainable solutions supporting the energy transition in the building sector. The company delivers projects in demanding international markets and develops energy-efficient systems for modern building and infrastructure projects worldwide.
As a successful Upper Austrian family-owned business, KE KELIT combines industrial expertise, research and sustainable “Made in Austria” production, thereby making an important contribution to strengthening Europe’s economy and innovation landscape.
