The European Investment Bank (EIB) will lend $290 million to Moline, Ill.-based Deere & Co. to research and develop fuel-efficient tractors, harvesters and diesel engines in Germany and France.

Three operations are to receive funding from the loan: a tractor-manufacturing plant in Mannheim, Germany; a combine plant in Zweibruecken, Germany; and a plant in Saran, France, where Deere builds diesel engines.

The financing is part of a broader EIB initiative to promote investment in low-emission and fuel-efficient engine technology. The bank said in a press release that part of its focus will be on agricultural vehicles.