The European Investment Bank (EIB) has announced plans to increase its support package to the REPowerEU plan from €30 billion to €45 billion alongside an expanded eligibility scope for projects to better align with the EU Commission’s Green Deal Industrial Plan.
The EIB’s Board of Directors decided to raise the additional funds earmarked for projects aligned with REPowerEU – a plan designed to end Europe’s dependence on fossil-fuel imports – from the initial €30 billion ($33.5 billion) package announced in October 2022 to €45 billion ($50.2 billion). The decision was made at the EIB Group’s July meeting in Luxembourg.
The new funding marks a fresh record for the Group, expanding its support to the build-up of manufacturing capacity for strategic net-zero technologies and products.
Projects eligible for financing include renewables, energy storage, grids and energy efficiency, as well electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
In practice, the EIB will support manufacturing in solar and thermal photovoltaics, onshore and offshore wind turbines, battery storage, heat pumps, electrolysers and fuel cells, grid technologies, sustainable biogas and carbon capture and storage.
All projects must comply with the Bank’s environmental, social, climate and procurement standards.
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The additional funding will be deployed by 2027 and is expected to mobilise in total more than €150 billion ($167.3 billion) in investment.
Also eligible are investments related to the extraction, processing and recycling of related critical raw materials.
Also aligning with the Green Deal Industrial Plan, the EIB has stated it will support the re-skilling and upskilling cost of the EU’s workforce and work closely with education systems and institutions, including in vocational education and training, to ensure that they have the proper means to deliver the required set of skills for the net-zero transition.
The EIB’s Board of Directors also approved €10 billion ($11.2 billion) in new lending for projects.
The approvals include new wind and solar generation in Spain and Austria, grid upgrades in Italy, and an electric vehicle battery cell manufacturing Gigafactory in France.
“We are deploying the full range of our available financial firepower to support Europe’s industrial competitiveness, manufacturing and the rollout of critical technologies that will lead us to a swift and just transition to net zero,” said EIB president Werner Hoyer. “The people of our Union can always count on the unwavering support of their Bank.”
90% of the additional lending foreseen under the EIB’s REPowerEU+ package will be provided by the EIB; the remaining 10% via the EIF (European Investment Fund), subject to EIF Board approval.
Outside the EU, the Board also approved financing for a new electricity interconnector between Ecuador and Peru and streamlined financing for small-scale clean energy and green transition projects across Africa.
