Sustainable Energy in EU External Aid funding instruments

Current and future initiatives supporting the development of sustainable energy in third countries through EU external aid funding instruments were presented in Brussels on 21 November in the context of a Sector Seminar organized by the Czech Permanent Representation to the EU and CEBRE, the Czech Business Representation to the EU. The event gathered over 100 companies from 14 different Member States as well as representatives from the EU Commission, the EIB, AFD, the Electrifi imitative and the Africa-EU Renewable Energy Cooperation Programme.

Schuman Associates was invited to moderate the panel discussions and it delivered a kick-off presentation providing guidelines and insights in EU external funding instruments from a strategic consultancy perspective. In this line the different panelists provided an overview of the broad range of possibilities to tap into EU funding in the energy sector across all the geographies were the EU is an active as a donor. Special emphasis was put on the existing blending financing modalities and the imminent operationalization of the new European External Investment Plan –described as blending 3.0 due to the incorporation of new innovative financing mechanisms as the European Fund for Sustainable Development– which is expected to leverage up to EUR 44 bn in private investment by 2020 and which will be officially launch next week at the Africa-EU Summit taking place in Abidjan on 28-29 November.

The funding landscape is complex with a broad range of funding instruments and different donors. In this sense, Schuman Associates has a long track record experience in supporting clients willing to benefit from the different funding modalities that the EU offers. It’s all about early intelligence, finding the right partners, providing the right message and positioning at the right time.

If you would like to explore new business avenues for your company in the domain of EU external aid funding do not hesitate to contact us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. / This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.