A new fund to help develop innovative European companies and bring clean energy technologies to the market has been created, as the first of its kind to cater for the required capital intensity and long development horizons that these technologies require.

Breakthrough Energy Ventures Europe (BEV-E) is a €100m investment fund established jointly by the European Commission, the European Investment Bank and Breakthrough Energy Ventures.

Funding for BEV-E will include a €50m contribution from the European Investment Bank guaranteed by InnovFin, a financial instrument funded through the EU's research and innovation programme, and a €50m contribution from Breakthrough Energy Ventures, the investor-led fund that includes Jack Ma, Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos.

Maroš Šefčovič, vice-president of the Commission for the EU, said: “Business as usual is not an option. We need to boost our investments with more than 500bn euro each year to achieve a carbon neutral economy by 2050. I am pleased that our pilot cooperation with Breakthrough Energy has taken off so fast. This is pioneering work: aligning private and public investment in cutting-edge innovation, to the benefit of the Energy Union and our climate.”

The fund will invest in five major energy-related sectors where efforts are essential in fighting climate change: electricity, transportation, agriculture, manufacturing and buildings. Investments are expected to start in the second half of 2019, at which time EU Member States and countries associated with Horizon 2020 will be eligible to apply for BEV-E funding.

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