- The EU’s Climate Bank Group increased its financing signed for projects in Germany to €8.6 billion last year
- 65% of all financing in Germany in 2023 was committed for projects contributing to climate while 30% of supported projects were dedicated to innovative technologies
In 2023, the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group has actively supported the green transition in Germany. The overall financing committed rose to €8.6 billion from €6.6 billion in the previous year. With this increase, the EIB Group remained on its steep growth path for its German operations: In 2021, investments in the country only stood at €5.5 billion.
The EIB has again exceeded its target to dedicate at least half of all financing to the EU`s climate goals: 65 percent of all financing in Germany was dedicated to climate action and environmental sustainability. This share is higher than in other regions: The overall share of the EIB-Group lending committed to climate and environmental projects stood at 56% last year.
“Our results and the increased contribution to the green transition along with the investments in innovation and decarbonisation of industry demonstrate the commitment of the EIB Group to addressing challenges facing not just Germany but the whole EU”, says EIB Vice-President Nicola Beer, “with continued strong support to renewable energy in 2023, our independence from fossil fuels is progressing.” She added: “Financing cutting edge research and development in climate friendly innovation which will further contribute to meeting our climate targets and strengthening European sovereignty. Our investments in the modernization of public infrastructure, like rail, power grids and fibre optic networks, along with continued support to small and medium businesses demonstrate tangible support to the citizens and the economy of Germany.”
In the current economic environment - with higher interest rates, disruptions to international trade and the challenges of new climate regulations, as our new EIB- Investment Survey shows - companies both private and public turned to the EIB for supporting long-term investments. The focus for these investments was on renewable energy and energy efficiency projects.
Continuing our multi-annual support to the energy transition in Germany, the EIB provided €1 billion to finance two offshore windfarms, one being the EnBW-windfarm in the North Sea, with further support under the RePower EU initiative.
The EU Bank in Germany invested into new regional trains for the S-Bahn Munich and in Baden-Württemberg. It also supported the upgrade of the municipal public transport in Hannover, by co-financing trams, electric busses and charging stations. The EIB also provided €400 million to the investment programme of Berlin`s water and wastewater company Berlin Wasser.
In the corporate sector, especially the large automotive suppliers have been showing increasing demand for EIB financing in their transition to electric cars and decarbonization, like Schaeffler AG. Also, companies in the chemical industry, like Covestro, have signed EIB loans to decarbonize production and become more energy efficient.
Focussing on innovation, the bank financed research and development plus the first industrial-scale roll out of the US-battery material start-up GDI in Europe. The company wants to replace graphite with silicon in anodes, being an example that shows how the German industrial base and skills of the workforce remain attractive for US investments in battery-technology, regardless of the US-government`s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).
Also, to support the expansion of the digital infrastructure, the EU-Bank provided a €175 million-loan for Northern Fiber Holding Group in Lüneburg. Both the Northern Fiber and the GDI projects were financed under the InvestEU program of the European Union. InvestEU backs EIB-Group-loans with guarantees provided via the EU-budget and is the succeeding programme of the Juncker plan (EFSI).
In its strategic co-operation with commercial banks in Germany, the EIB accelerated the green transition of the economy in the country and provided support to German financial institution for their EU wide activities, for example with Deutsche Bank, Berenberg Bank, Commerzbank and LBBW. Through various lending and risk sharing products, the EIB unlocked more than EUR 1bn of new lending in critical areas such as Climate Action, SME & Midcap finance, Innovation and Gender equality.
Finally, through the European Investment Fund (EIF), our subsidiary, the EIB Group again supported smaller businesses, mostly in cooperation with public and private banks, like with Bürgschaftsbank Baden-Württemberg, and co-invested into specialized innovation-funds, like the Alpine Ventures Fund. Overall, EIF-investments in Germany amounted to €1.63 billion last year.
When it comes to policy focus, EIB-Group financing in Germany in 2023 mainly targeted projects in its sector of “sustainable cities and regions”, with €3.5 billion, followed by “innovation, digital and human capital” with €2.65 billion. “Sustainable energy and natural resources” investments reached €1.5 billion, and SME-financing amounted to close to €1 billion in 2023.
Background information
The European Investment Bank (ElB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union, owned by its Member States. It finances sound investments that contribute to EU policy objectives. EIB projects bolster competitiveness, drive innovation, promote sustainable development, enhance social and territorial cohesion, and support a just and swift transition to climate neutrality. The EIB Group, which also includes the European Investment Fund (EIF), signed a total of €88 billion in new financing for over 900 projects in 2023. These commitments are expected to mobilise around €320 billion in investment, supporting 400,000 companies and 5.4 million jobs.
All projects financed by the EIB Group are in line with the Paris Climate Accord. The EIB Group does not fund investments in fossil-fuels. We are on track to deliver on our commitment to support €1 trillion in climate and environmental sustainability investment in the decade to 2030 as pledged in our Climate Bank Roadmap. Over half of the EIB Group’s annual financing supports projects directly contributing to climate change mitigation, adaptation, and a healthier environment. Approximately half of the EIB's financing within the EU is directed towards cohesion regions, where per capita income is lower. This underscores the Bank's commitment to fostering inclusive growth and the convergence of living standards.
The European Investment Fund (EIF) is part of the European Investment Bank Group. Its central mission is to support Europe's micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by helping them to access finance. The EIF designs and develops venture and growth capital, guarantees and microfinance instruments that specifically target this market segment. In this role, the EIF contributes to the pursuit of key EU policy objectives such as competitiveness and growth, innovation and digitalisation, social impact, skills and human capital, climate action and environmental sustainability and more.
The InvestEU programme provides the European Union with crucial long-term funding by leveraging substantial private and public funds in support of a sustainable recovery. It also helps mobilise private investments for the European Union’s policy priorities, such as the European Green Deal and the digital transition. The InvestEU programme brings together under one roof the multitude of EU financial instruments currently available to support investment in the European Union, making funding for investment projects in Europe simpler, more efficient and more flexible. The programme consists of three components: the InvestEU Fund, the InvestEU Advisory Hub and the InvestEU Portal. The InvestEU Fund is implemented through financial partners that will invest in projects using the EU budget guarantee of €26.2 billion. The entire budget guarantee will back the investment projects of the implementing partners, increase their risk-bearing capacity and thus mobilise at least €372 billion in additional investment.