25. 04.11:
Two new local energy investment supports unveiled
Along with the launch of the European Energy Efficiency Fund (EEE-F) which will provide EUR200 million towards risk capital finance in the form of loans, guarantees and equity participation as well as financial and technical assistance grants towards the preparation of sustainable energy investment projects by local authorities at the recent European Sustainable Energy Week in Brussels, two separate energy financing initiatives which are forthcoming were also unveiled.
Based on the model of the European Investment Bank's ELENA (European Local ENergy Assistance) programme which helps local authorities to efficiently structure major energy investment projects with budgets in excess of EUR50 million so they can attract the required finance from other sources, the new instruments represent an effort to bring smaller- and medium-scale investments into the fold.
* KfW-ELENA will use participating financial intermediaries to deploy a combination of technical assistance grants, global loans and carbon crediting (payments for verified greenhouse gas emission reductions achieved by projects and linked into the European Emission Trading Scheme) in order to mobilise municipal sustainability investments;
* CEB-ELENA will provide technical assistance for the development of investment projects targeting social housing. It is financed by the Council of Europe Development Bank.
It is important to bear in mind that ELENA operates on a permanently open basis (i.e. without the need to conform to set Call for Proposals timetables) and has no transnational requirements.
EEE-F
KfW-ELENA
CEB-ELENA (Intelligent Energy Europe 2011 Work Programme)
