Eastern Europe Energy Efficiency and Environment Partnership Fund

Description What is done in the programme or project and why, what results are pursued, who benefits from the activities and who are involved in the implementation.

The Eastern Europe Energy Efficiency and Environmental Partnership Fund (E5P), managed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), operates in the EU's eastern partner countries. Finland's funding for the Fund is EUR 1 million and targets Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Moldova and Belarus. Through the Fund, Finland has also supported Ukraine with EUR 2 million in the past. The E5P fund supports municipal investments that increase energy efficiency, support renewable energy and improve the state of the environment. The projects also relate to urban transport, street lighting, waste management and water and waste water. The Fund was set up on the basis of an initiative taken by Sweden in 2009. Its capital today exceeds EUR 200 million and the largest financiers are the EU and Sweden. E5P is unique because the countries receiving projects are contributing to the funding. The evaluation published in July 2019 found the Fund to be a major financial instrument in the Eastern Partnership countries. The Fund has been able to reduce carbon emissions and increase energy efficiency. The projects have had 8 million beneficiaries and a reduction in CO2 emissions of one million tonnes per year. In the beginning, slow-starting payments have increased significantly. It has been decided to extend the fund's activities for the next 10 years. At the London Donors' meeting on 22 November 2019, the EU pledged 20 M€, Sweden EUR 18 million and Norway EUR 1 million. Several countries expressed an interest in further funding. E5P provides initial capital for projects, then financed by International Financial Institutions such as the EBRD, the European Investment Bank (EIB), the Nordic Environmental Finance Corporation (Nefco) and the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB). The EBRD will implement Good Governance Policies accepted at the Annual Meeting in May 2019, which are Environmental and Social Policy, Access to Information and Project Accountability Policy. Policies also take full account marginalized groups. The project supports priority 4 "Climate change and natural resources" of Finnish development policy, in particular climate change mitigation.