One year after the launch of the Investment plan for Europe and the Energy Union, a number of sustainable, low-carbon projects around Europe are beginning to bring about real change on the road to Energy Union.
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The Investment Plan For Europe is financing 24 projects covering areas such as energy efficiency, renewables and smart grids. 29% of the available funding is channelled into the energy sector, helping to drive the EU goal of creating an Energy Union forward.
Projects include renovating buildings to make them energy efficient in France, to a new onshore wind farm in Sweden, with 11 EU Member States receiving for sustainable, low-carbon projects that are in line with the EU’s energy and climate goals. An additional EUR 16.9 billion in investment is expected in sustainable and low-carbon energy projects over the coming years.
Key projects have been set up inenergy infrastructure (in particular interconnections), renewable energy and energy efficiency, the financial cornerstone of the Investment Plan (EFSI, European Fund for Strategic investments) has allocated to theenergy sector 29% of financing approved by the European Investment Bank (EIB). This adds up to the actions undertaken to leverage investments for small and medium enterprises (SME), in particular through the European Investment Fund (EIF), which has channelled EUR 3.5 billion for185 SME financing agreements in the energy sector. Altogether, these operations in the energy sector are expected to have the knock-on effect of attracting additional investments of over EUR 16.9 billion in the coming years.
The 24 projects already funded are helping to achieve a carbon-free electricity sector. By 2030 half of all Europe’s electricity will be powered by renewables and it will be carbon-free in about 35 years. A smart meters project in the UK, the construction ofaffordable energy efficiency housing units in France and the creation of an infrastructure investment fund to support financing for larger renewable energy projects, in wind, biomass and the transmission ofelectricity generated offshore in Denmark
are expected to contribute to reaching the 2030 energy and climate goals, in line with the Paris Agreement.
In addition to funding, the EU helps to make investments easier, more predictable and more attractive. Energy stakeholders, both from the public and the private sector, can benefit from technical assistance by registering a project to reach potential investors worldwide through theEuropean Investment Project Portal (EIPP); up to now, more than one third of the submitted projects are energy-related, mostly in renewables sector, with Greece, Romania, Bulgaria and Lithuania as leading submitters. They can also make use of the advisory services of theEuropean Investment Advisory Hub (EIAH), who is engaging proactively in energy efficiency as well as in emerging areas such as smart cities or electro-mobility; it devotes a particular attention to public-private partnerships and cross-border projects.
Accessing funding
Opportunities to secure financing under EFSI are available on the EIB website. Projects can be directly submitted by promoters to the EIB or to established investment platforms, such as “IF Tri en Nord-Pas-de-Calais”, a regional investment platform in the North of France. Infrastructure and innovation projects can consult the dedicated EIB webpage.Small and medium enterprises can consult a dedicated EIF page SME Window implemented through the EIF.
Further information
- Press release and FAQs on one year of Investment Plan for Europe:
- Communication Taking stock of the Investment Plan for Europe and next steps
- Projects approved for financing under the EFSI
- SME agreements approved for financing under the EFSI
