The European Investment Bank (EIB) has called on the EU Commission to pay out fewer subsidies via the planned European Competitiveness Fund (ECF). “We believe that it makes sense to increase the share of financial instruments that have a leverage effect compared to the Commission’s current draft. I would strongly advise making this part of the Competitiveness Fund bigger than the subsidy part,” EIB Vice-President Nicola Beer told Table.Briefings.
In the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), the European Competitiveness Fund is to be significantly larger than InvestEU. Through this fund, the Commission will provide a total of EUR 26.6 billion in guarantees for investments in sustainability and new jobs by 2027. Three quarters of the guarantees will be provided by the EIB. Beer said that the EIB is prepared to maintain this quota for the ECF despite the higher volume: “We are also very happy to implement 75% of the Competitiveness Fund.” The EIB has proven that financial resources flow quickly into promising projects via the bank.
According to Beer, the EU can score points in the global race for supply agreements for critical raw materials with “reliability and predictability.” US President Donald Trump recently agreed on closer cooperation with Australia, Japan and other countries. “Other countries may claim that the USA would buy the entire range of raw materials from them, but they don't want to be unilaterally dependent either,” reported Beer. The situation is similar with China. Many Australian mining companies, for example, sell a large proportion of their raw materials in China and also have shareholders from China.
Beer also sees high environmental and social standards in mining as a competitive advantage in negotiations with third countries. “We are now seeing green mining projects in Europe, which also have the potential to be a persuasive factor internationally. We can then say to other countries: ‘We are doing joint projects with better conditions for your environment and for your workforce.’” Manuel Berkel, János Allenbach-Ammann