Energy consumption in the European Union has steadily declined over the last twenty years, and since 2020 economic growth has been effectively decoupled from energy use. However, reaching the European climate and energy targets requires faster action, better implementation of energy efficiency projects and stronger monitoring of needs and results.
A new report by the European Investment Bank looks at energy efficiency investments by EU firms and the support they need to increase that investment. Using data from the EIB Investment Survey, the report explores how European businesses are responding to energy challenges and the impact those challenges are having on their business. Begun in 2016, the Investment Survey and collects data from about 12 000 EU firms and 800 US firms.
EU firms, particularly small ones, still face obstacles to investing in energy efficiency, such as a lack of finance, difficulty finding people with the right skills and uncertainty over the future. Policy support can help, such as tailored financing, advisory services that can help companies implement projects and simplified energy audits that identify the biggest-impact investments.
The report is available here.