EBRD and EU Expand InvestEU Support by 478 Million Euros
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the European Union are expanding their cooperation to promote sustainable investment in the EU member states where the EBRD operates. As both institutions announced on the sidelines of the 2026 EBRD Annual Meeting in Riga, the InvestEU program will be supplemented with additional guarantees totaling up to 478.4 million euros. In addition, 11.4 million euros will be allocated for advisory and support services.
The initiative aims to facilitate investments in sustainable infrastructure, green technologies, digitalization, innovation, and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The additional guarantees are intended, in particular, to enable higher-risk projects—which would have difficulty securing capital under normal market conditions—to access financing.
Focus on Green Infrastructure and Digitalization
The new guarantees enable the EBRD to finance higher-risk projects and thereby mobilize additional private investment. In addition, the advisory services are intended to support project promoters in the technical, legal, and financial preparation of their projects.
The EBRD is one of the most important partners of the InvestEU program. To date, the program has provided guarantees totaling more than 470 million euros, enabling investments of over 5 billion euros in sectors such as energy, transportation, municipal infrastructure, manufacturing, agriculture, and natural resources.
EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso described the agreement as another example of the close cooperation between the bank and the European Union. She noted that the partnership makes it possible to mobilize targeted investments and facilitate companies’ access to urgently needed financing.
InvestEU Aims to Strengthen Europe’s Competitiveness
EU Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis stated that the additional funds would help stimulate investment in strategically important areas such as sustainable infrastructure, digitalization, research, innovation, and support for small and medium-sized enterprises.
At the same time, he highlighted the recent reforms to the InvestEU framework, which are designed to make the program more efficient, flexible, and user-friendly. This is intended to strengthen Europe’s competitiveness, increase economic resilience, and accelerate the transition to a climate-friendly energy supply.
The expansion of the guarantees underscores the importance of public support instruments in mobilizing private investment and financing long-term transformation projects within the European Union.
