EIB Climate Bank Roadmap 2026-30: Strengthening the EU’s climate action toolbox through strategic sustainable finance

The Clean Air Task Force urges the European Investment Bank to adopt a more strategic and technology-neutral lending policy for its 2026-30 roadmap. It argues that the EIB should move beyond its limited current support for nuclear fission, fusion, and carbon capture and storage (CCS) to provide patient capital and risk-sharing instruments for these indispensable technologies. The document specifically advocates for funding next-generation geothermal, small modular reactors, and industrial decarbonisation clusters to address hard-to-abate sectors and ensure a reliable, 24/7 clean energy supply for the EU.

• The EIB's actual funding for innovative low-carbon technologies has not matched its commitments, with only one or two projects each receiving support for carbon capture and storage (CCS), nuclear fission, and fusion.
• Nuclear energy projects face high costs of capital and construction due to long timelines without revenue and perceived risks by private investors; the EIB is urged to use risk-sharing tools like the Regulated Asset Base (RAB) model and expand corporate Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) to include nuclear.
• Next-generation geothermal technologies, including Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS), closed-loop systems (AGS), and superhot rock geothermal, require EIB support for early-stage demonstrations and risk-sharing to become competitive gigawatt-scale energy sources.
• Fusion energy requires a shift from research-based funding to Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) to support the startup ecosystem and commercialisation, using bespoke screening criteria distinct from nuclear fission.
• There is a significant investment gap in CCS in the EU, with no operational commercial-scale storage sites and a disparity between the EU ETS carbon price (around €70/tCO₂) and the actual levelized costs of CCS value chains (€67 to 286/tCO₂).
• Clean hydrogen investment should be prioritised for hard-to-electrify sectors such as refining, chemicals, steel, shipping, and aviation, and should be integrated into industrial clusters rather than funded in isolation.
• The EIB should provide long-term, patient capital for technologies with lower technology readiness levels, as 35% of the emission reductions needed for net-zero will come from technologies not yet available on the market.

APA

Clean Air Task Force (2025). EIB Climate Bank Roadmap 2026-30: Strengthening the EU’s climate action toolbox through strategic sustainable finance. https://www.catf.us/resource/eib-climate-bank-roadmap-2026-30-strengthening-the-eus-climate-action-toolbox-through-strategic-sustainable-finance/

Chicago

Clean Air Task Force. EIB Climate Bank Roadmap 2026-30: Strengthening the EU’s climate action toolbox through strategic sustainable finance. 2025. https://www.catf.us/resource/eib-climate-bank-roadmap-2026-30-strengthening-the-eus-climate-action-toolbox-through-strategic-sustainable-finance/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Clean Air Task Force |title=EIB Climate Bank Roadmap 2026-30: Strengthening the EU’s climate action toolbox through strategic sustainable finance |date=13 October 2025 |url=https://www.catf.us/resource/eib-climate-bank-roadmap-2026-30-strengthening-the-eus-climate-action-toolbox-through-strategic-sustainable-finance/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{cleanairtaskforce2025eib, author = {{Clean Air Task Force}}, title = {{EIB Climate Bank Roadmap 2026-30: Strengthening the EU’s climate action toolbox through strategic sustainable finance}}, publisher = {Clean Air Task Force}, year = {2025}, month = oct, url = {https://www.catf.us/resource/eib-climate-bank-roadmap-2026-30-strengthening-the-eus-climate-action-toolbox-through-strategic-sustainable-finance/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }