The European Investment Bank (EIB) announced at its July meeting that it will increase additional funding for projects under the REPowerEU initiative to US$50 billion (€45 billion). The additional funding comes on top of the EIB’s already extensive support for clean investments represents a 50% increase compared to the original €30 billion REPowerEU package announced last October.
The EIB has also decided to expand the range of eligible sectors that can benefit from the package. Sectors now include solar photovoltaic and thermal technologies, onshore and offshore wind power, batteries and storage, heat pumps and geothermal technologies, electrolysers and fuel cells, sustainable biogas, carbon capture and storage, and grid technologies – as well as investments related to extraction, processing and recycling of relevant critical raw materials – can receive EIB support to expand their production capacities in the EU for cutting-edge strategic net-zero technologies and products.
We are using the full range of our available financial strength to support Europe’s industrial competitiveness, manufacturing and deployment of critical technologies that will lead us to a rapid and equitable transition to net zero.
– said Werner Hoyer, President of the EIB.
The REPowerEU initiative, launched by the European Commission in May 2022, aims to help the EU save energy, generate clean energy and diversify its energy mix. Part of REPowerEU’s focus is to encourage massive investment in renewable energy. Last year, with the support of REPowerEU over 41 GW of new solar capacity was installed.
Taken together, the additional funds should mobilize more than 150 billion euros in investments for the target sectors by 2027.
The European Commission launched this in February Green Deal Industrial Plan Also, accelerating access to finance has been positioned as one of the cornerstones. It is expected to complement ongoing efforts under the Framework European Green Deal and REPowerEU. Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, said in a press release: “Better access to finance will allow our key clean tech industries to grow rapidly.”
In addition to an upgrade of its REPowerEU package, the EIB also approved EUR 10 billion for projects in the fields of energy, innovation, business investment, education and water infrastructure damaged by the earthquake in Turkey.