#EFSI: €315 billion - MEPs to debate if investment plan for Europe is delivering

The EU has a €315 billion investment plan to fuel Europe's economic recovery by mobilizing public and private investment, but is it working? On Wednesday morning (8 June) MEPs debate the results of the first year of the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), which according to the European Commission has had a promising start. Follow the discussion with Commissioner Jyrki Katainen live online from 9h CET.

How it works

The aim of EFSI, run by the European Investment Bank (EIB), is to provide public support for projects that are economically viable, but would not otherwise happen because private investors are hesitant to finance them due to the uncertain economic situation and the higher risk involved. EFSI assumes part of that risk, thus encouraging private investors to get on board.

The fund includes a €16 billion guarantee from the EU and a further €5bn from the EIB. This would allow the EIB to issue bonds for three times this amount and use the cash to co-finance projects alongside private investors so that every euro spent by the investment fund will attract an additional €15bn in investment from companies and public authorities, leading to an overall investment of €315bn.

EFSI focuses on large infrastructure and innovation projects as well as on financing for small and medium-sized enterprises by providing guarantees to banks.

The  regulation setting up EFSI was approved by MEPs on 24 June 2015.

Results so far

In total 64 projects have been approved for €9.3bn worth of EFSI financing. In addition 185 financing agreements for small and medium-sized enterprises have been approved with banks. More than 140,000 firms will benefit from the €3.5bn in approved EFSI funding. The total investment from these operations is expected to reach €100bn.
Energy, transport, digital project and research and development account for three quarters of all approved projects so far. Most of the approved project have been in large EU countries, namely in France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK.

Coming up
The European Commission announced on 1 June that it intends to extend EFSI beyond the three-year duration that originally had been agreed. It aims to offer additional support for small and medium-sized enterprises and further develop advisory services to those seeking funding to prepare projects.

On the same day the European Investment Project Portal was launched to help bring together projects and investors. The Commission also wants to introduce similar models of EU financing in countries outside the EU.

Plenary debate

Follow the plenary debate with Jyrki Katainen, the commissioner responsible for jobs, growth, investment and competitiveness, live online on Wednesday 8 June from 9h CET.