European Energy Efficiency Fund (eeef) investing in sustainable energy projects in Europe
Description
This initiative is carried out by investing into projects that have been identified by public authorities to improve their communities' carbon footprint via facilitating investments including i) energy efficiency inc. public building upgrades and upgrades of public street lighting infrastructure, ii) renovating district heating networks and iii) replacing heat supply capacities with renewable energy sources. The eeef is approached for financing by private parties that have been awarded a public concession or an energy supply agreement with a public body. For a project to be awarded a concession, it needs to complete the public procurement process. The eeef considers project for investment once concessions have been awarded. The Fund has various ways to invest into projects i) it can provide funding to a project vehicle that has been set up by a private party that holds the concession for a public assets to be upgraded or to implement a renewable energy project ii) it can invest equity into a project vehicle that has been set by a private party that holds a concession for a public asset that is to be upgraded or in the case of a renewable energy project newly built iii) it can provide funding directly to the public authority or to the entity set up by the public authority dedicated to conduct the upgrade works or construct the new sustainable energy supply capacities iv) it can buy receivables from a private company that has performed the construction/renovation works in accordance to the agreement with the public authority. In this case the project is structured in such a way that the public authority is repaying the investment from the energy savings (without constraining its budget) v) it can invest together with a private entity in a number of projects including district heating networks to supply renewable heat and electricity to a public entity to a price lower than the base case (of when the project was generating with fossil fuels). The eeef can also be approached directly by public authorities that are seeking financing for their energy efficiency or renewable energy initiatives. The other implementation instrument that the initiative is using is a Technical Assistance facility, which will be described below.
To prepare local energy efficiency upgrade projects is complex and often challenging for public entities due to the need to i) conduct energy audits, ii) calculate potential energy savings, iii) propose and select new equipment for replacement, iv) prepare the bidding process, v) evaluate the tender and vi) select the company to implement the project. This process can take up to 3 years for Cities, especially when they have large populations > 200k. The eeef understands the complexity of such projects and since the inception of the Fund has been equipped with a Technical Assistance facility. Initially this was provided by the European Commission and this TAF successfully fulfilled its objective by supporting project development at the public level. Between 2011 and 2016 the facility supported over 30 public entities, facilitating over EUR 400 m in investments, some of which were financed by the eeef including the City of Santander in Spain, the City of Venlo in the Netherlands, the Alentejo region in Portugal and Region Rhone Alpes in France. When the Technical Assistance facility from the European Commission came to an end, the eeef continued to develop this important resource by building a new facility to support public entities to prepare their investment programmes. Since 2014 the Fund has allocated part of its revenues to its own technical assistance facility. These funds have been supplemented by additional funding provided by ELENA, under the Horizon 2020 Programme of the European Union. The eeef's Technical Assistance facility (eeef TAF) builds on the experience gained from its predecessor facility. The current technical assistance is structured in a way that provides services to public entities to i) conduct energy audits, ii) prepare procurement documents, iii) conduct the energy service company selection process to realise renovation measures and iv) select financing instruments. These services are paid for by the fund (the advisors were selected via a competitive and process where the advisor pitched to conduct the aforementioned services) and contribute to build capacity within the public authorities. Once the public tender has been awarded, the Fund is available to finance the renovation measures.
The eeef has been established and capitalised by the European Commission to promote energy efficiency, renewable energy and clean public transportation at the level of public entities, cities, communities. The fund can support eligible projects via different financing instruments. When a project/investment has been identified by the public authority and published for tender when a private company is selected to realise the project implementation, funding from the fund could flow into the project implementation vehicles or finance the investment directly. All investment proposals identified must be in line with the investment guidelines of the fund. These clearly stipulate investments criteria in general, comprising exclusion list and pro area of investment defined parameters for investment. All investment proposals, once they have been reviewed from a technical, legal and financial point of view, will be tabled for approval by the eeef's independent investment committee. Once approved, the Fund invests via project vehicles or the investment is paid directly to the private company awarded the tender. Funds will be disbursed in line with construction progress. The Fund has established a reporting mechanism for all projects comply with. The reporting is reviewed by the Investment Manager of the Fund and distributed to investors. The Governing bodies of the Fund are represented by investors that review activities of the Fund on a regular basis and also outline and refine the investment strategy of the Fund. The eeef is a regulated vehicle by the Luxembourgish authority CSSF which oversees activities of the fund.
DWS is the Investment Manager for the European Energy Efficiency Fund
SDGS & Targets
Goal 7
Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all
7.1
By 2030, ensure universal access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services
7.1.1
Proportion of population with access to electricity
7.1.2
Proportion of population with primary reliance on clean fuels and technology
7.2
7.2.1
Renewable energy share in the total final energy consumption
7.3
7.3.1
Energy intensity measured in terms of primary energy and GDP
7.a
7.a.1
International financial flows to developing countries in support of clean energy research and development and renewable energy production, including in hybrid systems
7.b
By 2030, expand infrastructure and upgrade technology for supplying modern and sustainable energy services for all in developing countries, in particular least developed countries, small island developing States, and land-locked developing countries, in accordance with their respective programmes of support
7.b.1
Installed renewable energy-generating capacity in developing and developed countries (in watts per capita)
Goal 11
Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable
11.1
By 2030, ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and upgrade slums
11.1.1
Proportion of urban population living in slums, informal settlements or inadequate housing
11.2
11.2.1
Proportion of population that has convenient access to public transport, by sex, age and persons with disabilities
11.3
11.3.1
Ratio of land consumption rate to population growth rate
11.3.2
Proportion of cities with a direct participation structure of civil society in urban planning and management that operate regularly and democratically
11.4
Strengthen efforts to protect and safeguard the world’s cultural and natural heritage
11.4.1
Total per capita expenditure on the preservation, protection and conservation of all cultural and natural heritage, by source of funding (public, private), type of heritage (cultural, natural) and level of government (national, regional, and local/municipal)
11.5
By 2030, significantly reduce the number of deaths and the number of people affected and substantially decrease the direct economic losses relative to global gross domestic product caused by disasters, including water-related disasters, with a focus on protecting the poor and people in vulnerable situations
11.5.1
Number of deaths, missing persons and directly affected persons attributed to disasters per 100,000 population
11.5.2
Direct economic loss attributed to disasters in relation to global domestic product (GDP)
11.5.3
(a) Damage to critical infrastructure and (b) number of disruptions to basic services, attributed to disasters
11.6
By 2030, reduce the adverse per capita environmental impact of cities, including by paying special attention to air quality and municipal and other waste management
11.6.1
Proportion of municipal solid waste collected and managed in controlled facilities out of total municipal waste generated, by cities
11.6.2
Annual mean levels of fine particulate matter (e.g. PM2.5 and PM10) in cities (population weighted)
11.7
11.7.1
Average share of the built-up area of cities that is open space for public use for all, by sex, age and persons with disabilities
11.7.2
Proportion of persons victim of non-sexual or sexual harassment, by sex, age, disability status and place of occurrence, in the previous 12 months
11.a
Support positive economic, social and environmental links between urban, peri-urban and rural areas by strengthening national and regional development planning
11.a.1
Number of countries that have national urban policies or regional development plans that (a) respond to population dynamics; (b) ensure balanced territorial development; and (c) increase local fiscal space
11.b
By 2020, substantially increase the number of cities and human settlements adopting and implementing integrated policies and plans towards inclusion, resource efficiency, mitigation and adaptation to climate change, resilience to disasters, and develop and implement, in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, holistic disaster risk management at all levels
11.b.1
Number of countries that adopt and implement national disaster risk reduction strategies in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030
11.b.2
Proportion of local governments that adopt and implement local disaster risk reduction strategies in line with national disaster risk reduction strategies
11.c
Support least developed countries, including through financial and technical assistance, in building sustainable and resilient buildings utilizing local materials
Goal 13
Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts
13.1
Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries
13.1.1
Number of deaths, missing persons and directly affected persons attributed to disasters per 100,000 population
13.1.2
Number of countries that adopt and implement national disaster risk reduction strategies in line with the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015–2030
13.1.3
Proportion of local governments that adopt and implement local disaster risk reduction strategies in line with national disaster risk reduction strategies
13.2
Integrate climate change measures into national policies, strategies and planning
13.2.1
Number of countries with nationally determined contributions, long-term strategies, national adaptation plans and adaptation communications, as reported to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
13.2.2
Total greenhouse gas emissions per year
13.3
Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning
13.3.1
Extent to which (i) global citizenship education and (ii) education for sustainable development are mainstreamed in (a) national education policies; (b) curricula; (c) teacher education; and (d) student assessment
13.a
Implement the commitment undertaken by developed-country parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to a goal of mobilizing jointly $100 billion annually by 2020 from all sources to address the needs of developing countries in the context of meaningful mitigation actions and transparency on implementation and fully operationalize the Green Climate Fund through its capitalization as soon as possible
13.a.1
Amounts provided and mobilized in United States dollars per year in relation to the continued existing collective mobilization goal of the $100 billion commitment through to 2025
13.b
Promote mechanisms for raising capacity for effective climate change-related planning and management in least developed countries and small island developing States, including focusing on women, youth and local and marginalized communities
13.b.1
Number of least developed countries and small island developing States with nationally determined contributions, long-term strategies, national adaptation plans and adaptation communications, as reported to the secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
SDG 14 targets covered
| Name | Description |
|---|
Deliverables & Timeline
Resources mobilized
Partnership Progress
| Title | Progress Status | Submitted |
|---|---|---|
| Partnership Progress 2021-04-30 | On track |
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Contact Information
Lada Strelnikova, Lead Fund Manager