Edinburgh-based Green Investment Bank records a £5.7m loss

The Green Investment Bank has announced a £1bn investment in offshore wind

The UK's Green Investment Bank (GIB) has recorded a loss of £5.7m this year, its annual results for 2013/2014 show.

The bank, which is owned by the UK Government, was set up to fund projects which help the environment while turning a profit.

It has invested £668m in clean energy schemes, including large scale offshore wind farms, in the past year

CEO Shaun Kingsbury said all schemes were on time and on budget and would soon see sustained profit.

The GIB, which has its headquarters in Edinburgh, invests in offshore wind, food waste to energy schemes, biomass power plants and other energy efficiency projects.

Investments this year bring the total number of projects the GIB has backed to 28.

The bank said, once the schemes were completed, they should deliver a return for the taxpayer of 8% a year.

Mr Kingsbury spoke to BBC Radio Scotland's Good Morning Scotland programme on Tuesday.

He said: "On the financials we've made a loss, but it's because all of the capital we've been investing has been going into construction projects.

"They take 18 months to two years to reach the end of the construction process. Once they're up and running, they'll produce the income we need to turn profitable."

He added: "Time will be our friend on this."

Offshore wind

Since it began lending in 2012, the bank has committed £1.3bn to green projects, with £3.5bn committed from private investors, it said.

When completed, the schemes aim to save 3.5m tonnes of carbon dioxide a year, and produce enough clean energy to power three million homes.

The bank has also unveiled plans to raise £1bn for a new fund to invest in offshore wind schemes.

WWF Scotland director Lang Banks said the plans could create up to 28,000 jobs in Scotland.

He said: "Plans for a new billion pound fund to help support the deployment of offshore wind is an excellent initiative that will help create jobs, cut carbon and keep the nation's lights on.

"Studies estimate that, for Scotland, alone the offshore wind industry could create 28,000 jobs by 2020 and contribute over £7bn of investment to the economy."