Former Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer joins EIB Management Committee, succeeding Thomas Östros and reinforcing the Bank’s drive on EU policy priorities

Former Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer joins EIB Management Committee, succeeding Thomas Östros and reinforcing the Bank’s drive on EU policy priorities

(IN BRIEF) Karl Nehammer, Austria’s former Chancellor (2021–2025), has been appointed Vice-President of the European Investment Bank, joining its Management Committee on 1 September 2025. Nominated by Austria and approved by the 27 EU finance ministers, he replaces Sweden’s Thomas Östros. Nehammer previously served as Interior Minister, National Council member and Secretary-General of the People’s Party. EIB President Nadia Calviño praised his European political experience, while Nehammer called the Bank vital to EU economic well-being and strategic autonomy. The EIB has invested over EUR 34 billion in Austria since 1973; the most recent Austrian Vice-President was Wilhelm Molterer (2011–2015). The EIB’s Management Committee comprises a President and eight Vice-Presidents appointed by the Board of Governors. In 2024, the EIB Group (including the EIF) signed nearly €89 billion for 900+ projects, mobilised over €100 billion for energy security and €110 billion in growth capital, and directed almost 60% of financing to climate-related initiatives, with about half of EU lending in cohesion regions.

(PRESS RELEASE) LUXEMBOURG, 23-Jul-2025 — /EuropaWire/ — Former Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer will step into a new European role this autumn, joining the European Investment Bank’s (EIB) Management Committee as Vice-President on 1 September 2025. His appointment — decided by the 27 EU finance ministers who represent the Bank’s shareholders — makes him the successor to Sweden’s Vice-President Thomas Östros.

An Austrian national, Nehammer arrives at the EIB with extensive senior-level experience. He led Austria’s government as Federal Chancellor from 2021 to 2025, previously served as Minister of the Interior (2020–2021), sat in the National Council (2017–2020), and acted as Secretary-General of the People’s Party.

EIB Group President Nadia Calviño welcomed the move: “I am pleased to welcome Karl Nehammer to the EIB Management Committee. His profound experience in European politics will be an important asset for our Group and for delivering on key EU policy goals.”

Upon confirmation, Nehammer said: “I am thrilled to join the European Investment Bank, an institution vital to the economic well-being and strategic autonomy of the European Union. The EIB plays a key role in backing priority investment across Europe and worldwide, and I look forward to working with President Calviño, my fellow Management Committee members, EIB Group staff and stakeholders to advance the Bank’s critical mission”.

Austria has a long-standing relationship with the EIB. Since 1973, the Group has financed more than EUR 34 billion in public and private sector projects across the country. The last Austrian to serve as EIB Vice-President was Wilhelm Molterer (2011–2015).

About the EIB and its governance
The Management Committee is the EIB’s permanent executive body, made up of the President and eight Vice-Presidents. Appointed by the Board of Governors — the economy and finance ministers of the 27 EU Member States — the Committee collectively oversees daily operations and ensures the implementation of Board of Directors’ decisions on borrowing and lending.

As the European Union’s long-term lending arm, owned by the Member States, the EIB finances projects that align with EU priorities across eight core areas: climate action and the environment; digitalisation and technological innovation; security and defence; cohesion; agriculture and the bioeconomy; social infrastructure; the capital markets union; and strengthening Europe’s role in a more peaceful, prosperous world.

Together with the European Investment Fund (EIF), the EIB Group signed almost €89 billion in new financing for over 900 high-impact projects in 2024 to bolster Europe’s competitiveness and security. All financing aligns with the Paris Climate Agreement, under the Bank’s Climate Bank Roadmap, and nearly 60% of annual lending supports climate mitigation, adaptation and environmental health. In 2024, the Group supported a record €100+ billion in new investment for Europe’s energy security and mobilised €110 billion in growth capital for start-ups, scale-ups and European pioneers. Roughly half of EIB financing inside the EU targets cohesion regions, where per capita income sits below the EU average.

Background information  

The EIB’s Management Committee is the Bank’s permanent collegiate executive body, composed of a President and eight Vice-Presidents. Its members are appointed by the EIB’s Board of Governors, which consists of the economy and finance ministers of the 27 EU Member States.

The Committee collectively oversees the day-to-day running of the EIB and is responsible for preparing and ensuring the implementation of the Board of Directors’ decisions, particularly concerning borrowing and lending operations.

The European Investment Bank (ElB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union, owned by its Member States. Built around eight core priorities, we finance investments that contribute to EU policy objectives by bolstering climate action and the environment, digitalisation and technological innovation, security and defence, cohesion, agriculture and bioeconomy, social infrastructure, the capital markets union, and a stronger Europe in a more peaceful and prosperous world.

The EIB Group, which also includes the European Investment Fund (EIF), signed nearly €89 billion in new financing for over 900 high-impact projects in 2024, boosting Europe’s competitiveness and security.

All projects financed by the EIB Group are in line with the Paris Climate Agreement, as pledged in our Climate Bank Roadmap. Almost 60% of the EIB Group’s annual financing supports projects directly contributing to climate change mitigation, adaptation, and a healthier environment.

Fostering market integration and mobilising investment, the Group supported a record of over €100 billion in new investment for Europe’s energy security in 2024 and mobilised €110 billion in growth capital for startups, scale-ups and European pioneers.Approximately half of the EIB’s financing within the European Union is directed towards cohesion regions, where per capita income is lower than the EU average.

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SOURCE: European Investment Bank