In the realm of the European Fund for Strategic Investments, the European Investment Bank (EIB) on July 23, signed a 50 million euro energy investment agreement. to fund another fund Omnes Capital, a private equity fund, for the launch of its third renewable energy fund, Capenergie 3. The company expects this will raise €200 million of investment capital by mid-2016,  for use in renewable energy production and heating networks. With an average of one job created for every megawatt of increased energy capacity, the project could also create up to 500 new jobs. Omnes Capital specialises in financing SMEs, and is a shareholder in lift-sharing website BlablaCar.

“With €100 million of capital, we will be able to invest one billion. That is the magic of the European Investment Bank. And this money will not only be used for big projects, but also for smaller ones,” said Serge Savasta, a representative of Omnes Capital.

“It would be much more efficient to continue in this direction rather than through direct investments. We have no ‘vulture capital’ in Europe, and that is what is lacking,”  French Minister for the Economy, Emmanuel Macro, a  former Rothschild banker said.  The EFSI has been known for its caution. The EIB tends to avoid any investment that may jeopardise its AAA status. The Omnes Capital project is the third French investment by the EFSI. The previous two were also related to the energy transition. So far, 14 European projects have received Juncker Plan funding.

French Minister of Environment Segolène Royale chose the French HyWay program to illustrate the best innovations on climate at the City Hall of Paris. Five Kangoo ZE-H2 equipped with Symbio FCell range extender are exhibited between July 3rd and 8th for the Innov’Climat exposition.

Photo: courtesy Symbio FCell