The European Parliament confirmed this Tuesday the political agreement on InvestEU reached in December 2020 with the European Commission.
The InvestEU programme will leverage substantial private and public funds to support investments and create jobs, building on the implementation of the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI).
The investment programme of the EU
The InvestEU programme will have a budgetary guarantee of €26.2 billion funded from NextGenerationEU resources and the Multiannual Financial Framework. The overall investment to be mobilised on this basis is estimated at more than €372 billion across the EU, of which 30% will contribute to climate objectives.
The programme will be structured around four policy windows:
- Sustainable Infrastructure
- Research, Innovation and Digitisation
- SMEs
- Social Investment and Skills
Strategic investments focusing on building stronger European value chains as well as supporting activities in critical infrastructure and technologies will be possible under all four windows.
Who can apply?
The InvestEU Regulation enables to provide capital support to SMEs which since 2019 face significant risks due to the crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. To benefit from support, SMEs will need to have a viable business model and contribute to long term EU policy objectives.
Member States will also have the option to use InvestEU as a tool to implement their recovery and resilience plans under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF).
The InvestEU guarantee will be open to the EIB group and also to multiple implementing partners, including international financial institutions and national promotional banks and institutions. This will facilitate a rapid deployment of the funds and ensure local outreach.
Next steps
The Council now also needs to formally approve the agreement reached, before the Presidents of the ECOFIN Council and the European Parliament can sign it. The Regulation will then be published in the Official Journal, allowing it to enter into force three days after publication.
The Commission expects all the necessary formal steps to be concluded in time for the Regulation to enter into force beginning of April 2021.
The Commission and the Implementing partners will finalise the necessary procedures and agreements so that that companies and project promoters can already start applying for financing in the coming months.
Source: InvestEU (europa.eu)
