The Energy Efficiency Financial Institutions Group (EEFIG)

EEFIG addresses barriers to energy efficiency financing through both policy design and market-based solutions to increase the scale of energy efficiency investments across Europe. Composed of over 300 representatives from more than 200 organisations, EEFIG's strength are its members - spanning public and private financial institutions, industry representatives and sector experts. EEFIG works through working groups that target specific themes. Through a multi-level stakeholder dialogue, working groups identify opportunities and barriers in the long-term financing for energy efficiency, and propose policy and market solutions.

Who we are

EEFIG comprises over 200 organisations working on energy efficiency investments throughout the European Union. These include financial institutions, investors, bank associations, energy efficiency practitioners, academia and other experts across the finance market.

What we do

In 2015, EEFIG published the landmark report defining the issue of energy efficiency investments in the context of the EU Energy Union strategy. Since then, EEFIG launched Europe’s largest database of energy efficiency investment projects (DEEP) and an Underwriting Toolkit  for financial institutions in 2017. EEFIG’s work inspired dozens of Horizon 2020 research and investment projects and is widely promoted in Member States through e.g. the Sustainable Energy Investment Forums.

Currently, EEFIG has eight working groups which are leading deep-dives in areas of key investment challenges for Europe, such as energy efficiency investment criteria, the evolution of financing practices, links between energy efficiency and lending default, and others. Each of these eight working groups are composed of approximately 20 members from across the energy finance community with specific contribution on thematic expertise and knowledge development.

EEFIG work continues to evolve and expand.  With the adoption of the European Union Clean Energy Package and new, more ambitious targets for 2030, the Commission has more recently proposed the European Green Deal with the task of  mobilising over €1 trillion towards climate activities. EEFIG recommendations are then more important than ever given the accelerated timeline to match impact-driven EU funding to evident climate change mitigation, a new priority shaping EEFIG's current and future work.

Source: The Energy Efficiency Financial Institutions Group (EEFIG) - European Commission.