EIB Commits €60 Million to Solas Capital Platform to Mobilise €400 Million for SME Energy Efficiency Projects Across Europe

EIB Commits €60 Million to Solas Capital Platform to Mobilise €400 Million for SME Energy Efficiency Projects Across Europe

(IN BRIEF) The European Investment Bank has committed €60 million to Solas Capital’s Solas Sustainable Energy Fund II to launch a co-financing platform aimed at scaling energy efficiency projects for SMEs across the European Union. The platform is expected to mobilise nearly €400 million, including private capital, for investments in technologies such as LED lighting, insulation, heat pumps, rooftop solar and EV charging infrastructure. By promoting an energy efficiency as a service model, the initiative enables SMEs to access modern decarbonisation technologies without large upfront costs, while offering investors stable, asset-backed returns. The new commitment builds on a €30 million EIB investment in 2022 and forms part of the broader EIB Group Energy Efficiency for SMEs initiative, which targets €17.5 billion in financing by 2027. In 2025 alone, the initiative delivered €6 billion, supporting up to 150,000 SMEs in improving resilience, competitiveness and environmental performance.

(PRESS RELEASE) LUXEMBOURG, 12-Feb-2026 — /EuropaWire/ — European Investment Bank has strengthened its push to accelerate energy savings among European businesses by committing €60 million to a new financing platform managed by Solas Capital. The investment will be channelled into Solas Sustainable Energy Fund II (SSEF II), the successor to the firm’s earlier energy efficiency fund, with the objective of expanding access to sustainable infrastructure solutions for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The new platform is designed to expand the European Union’s energy-efficiency services market and enhance the competitiveness of SMEs by lowering energy expenses and reducing carbon emissions. With co-financing from the EIB and private investors, the initiative is expected to mobilise close to €400 million for projects across multiple EU countries. Targeted investments include LED lighting upgrades, insulation measures, heat pump installations, rooftop solar systems and electric-vehicle charging infrastructure.

A central feature of the model is energy efficiency as a service. Instead of making upfront capital purchases of equipment, companies can procure long-term, fixed-price energy services that deliver measurable savings. This structure enables SMEs and other eligible businesses to access advanced technologies without large initial investments, while providing investors with asset-backed, contracted revenue streams that diversify energy infrastructure portfolios.

The new commitment builds on an earlier €30 million investment made by the EIB in 2022 into the original Solas Sustainable Energy Fund (SSEF), a €220 million energy efficiency debt vehicle also advised by Solas Capital. By expanding this partnership, the EIB aims to scale proven decarbonisation infrastructure models and reinforce Europe’s energy security and competitiveness.

The platform was formally inaugurated during a signing ceremony in Luxembourg, where representatives of the EIB Group and industry stakeholders gathered to exchange views on green intermediated financing and advisory instruments. The initiative complements the work of the European Investment Fund (EIF) within the broader EIB Group framework.

Part of the wider SME energy efficiency strategy

The Solas platform is the latest project under the EIB Group Energy Efficiency for SMEs initiative, launched with support from the European Commission. The initiative aims to deploy €17.5 billion in financing by 2027 to assist up to 350,000 SMEs in cutting energy costs and reducing their carbon footprint through established energy-saving technologies.

Support for the programme also comes from the Solar Impulse Foundation, which promotes the concept of “servitisation,” or energy efficiency as a service — an approach first highlighted at COP29 in 2024.

In 2025 alone, the broader initiative delivered €6 billion in financing, twice the amount provided in 2024, enabling up to 150,000 SMEs across Europe to undertake energy efficiency and decarbonisation projects during its first year of operation. The latest partnership with Solas Capital reinforces momentum behind this financing strategy and underscores the growing role of blended finance in supporting Europe’s green transition.

Background information    

EIB Group  

The European Investment Bank (ElB) Group is the financing arm of the European Union, owned by the 27 Member States, and one of the largest multilateral development banks in the world. In 2025, the EIB Group signed €100 billion of new financing and advisory services for over 870 high-impact projects in eight core priorities that support EU policy objectives: climate action and the environment, digitalisation and technological innovation, security and defence, territorial cohesion, agriculture and the bioeconomy, social infrastructure, strong global partnerships and the savings and investment union. Beyond long-term loans for large infrastructures, the EIB Group crowds-in private investment for high-risk innovative projects and businesses, with a growing role in Europe’s markets for venture debt, venture capital, guarantees and securitisations.

Photos of the EIB Group’s spokespeople and headquarters, logo files and video B-roll for media use are available here.

Solas Capital

Solas Capital is the European specialist in building and industrial decarbonisation infrastructure investments. They address a crucial pillar of the energy transition—energy efficiency and behind-the-meter projects—by providing tailor-made project finance solutions to energy service companies. Their asset-backed private credit strategy delivers fixed-income-type returns and portfolio diversification to institutional investors alongside measurable climate impact and energy security. Based in Zurich with offices in Munich and Dublin, Solas Capital is the investment advisor to the Solas Sustainable Energy Fund ICAV, which is supported by the Munich Re Group, the European Investment Bank, and the LIFE Programme of the European Commission.

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Bruno Hoyer
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+352 4379 – 83045

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SOURCE: European Investment Bank