President Calviño, distinguished guests, dear friends,
Im delighted to welcome you here to the Berlaymont.
Its always a pleasure to share the stage with Nadia. First of all, because shes an excellent person to work with.
And second, because whenever were on stage together, I get to announce new funding or a great new initiative – so its always a good news story!
And today is no different. Im delighted to be here for the launch of the “Energy Efficiency in SMEs” initiative, which is led by the EIB Group and supported by the European Commission.
I am especially happy as this initiative is the first of the 6 priority deliverables set out in the Energy Efficiency Roadmap, which I announced at the IEA Global Conference in June.
So, with this initiative, we get our roadmap up and running. We continue to deliver on the objectives of our Affordable Energy Action Plan. And most importantly, we can make a tangible difference to thousands of our small and medium sized businesses.
To understand the importance of SMEs, we can zoom out to a European level: they represent around 99% of all businesses in the EU. They employ around 90 million people, and they contribute over 50% of EU GDP.
But we can also zoom in to a local level: they are the local cafes and corner shops that we visit every day.
They are the family-run businesses that have been passed on for generations. The new tech firms that are leading the next generation.
In other words, SMEs are at the heart of our European economy, our local communities, and our daily lives.
And if SMEs are the heart of Europe, energy is their lifeblood.
Unfortunately, this is where the problem lies. Lets use an example.
Nadia and I each own a café. Same city, same size, same turnover. But Nadias café is in a building with the highest energy efficiency standard, while mine is in the lowest.
In this case, Nadias building uses 10 times less energy than mine. And my energy bill is 90% higher than hers.
Which one of us is going to stay in business?
This is just one made-up example, but there are too many real examples across Europe.
The reality is that not enough SMEs are capitalising on the potential of energy efficiency. They struggle to access the services and solutions that will help them to save.
This is for a variety of reasons: regulatory complexity; high upfront costs for investments; lack of internal capacity to implement energy-saving measures.
As a result of these and other barriers, SMEs invest in energy efficiency at only half the rate of larger companies. We cant allow this to continue.
We must close the investment gap, simplify access, and accelerate the deployment of energy efficiency solutions.
We need to help businesses to invest in electric boilers and industrial heat pumps. To buy new equipment with higher standards. To improve buildings, and to install solar panels and battery solutions.
And with todays initiative, I hope to see these, and other solutions being rolled out.
With the support of the Commission, this initiative covers all energy efficiency investments of SMEs and advisory services.
By doubling the budget to 17.5bn EUR over the next three years, the aim is to reach 350,000 SMEs across Europe.
In addition, we are working full speed with the EIB Group on extending the EU guarantee scheme to SMEs.
The goal is simple: reduce the investment risks, increase the bankability of SME-led projects, and double the market for energy efficiency service providers so that they can invest between EUR 4 and EUR 6 billion per year into energy efficiency measures.
By doing this, we can help energy consumers to generate savings in the range of 25-30%, for example through building renovations.
We are also fully harnessing the European Energy Efficiency Financing Coalition, to strengthen collaboration between public and private investments in energy efficiency.
Today I can announce the launch of a second working group under the Coalition for SMEs and mid-caps, which will bring financing solutions closer to companies on the ground.
These are some of the steps we have taken so far. But they will not be the last.
Early next year, we will publish a Heating and Cooling Strategy, as well as an Electrification Action Plan, both of which will open new avenues for energy efficiency gains in businesses.
We are also assessing the development of a tripartite contract for energy efficiency, to scale projects, drive investment, and create jobs across the energy efficiency value chain.
Finally, the Commissions proposal for the next MFF has made easier access to funding for SMEs a priority. In this context, energy efficiency investments would be a prime candidate for support.
Dear friends,
We all know the importance of energy efficiency.
It is our “first fuel”. Our “cheapest form of energy”. And for Europe, it is a strategic imperative.
And thats why we are here today.
Because, in Europe, SMEs are at the heart of our economy and our way of life.
And by working together to make our SMEs more energy efficient, we boost our economy, we benefit our climate, and we keep a healthy heartbeat in communities across Europe.